Ultimatum in Blood On Temporary Hiatus
by TheDarkLadyKira
Summary: Isako knew it was wrong, she knew she could be branded a traitor, but she had to do it. The girl bent down and healed the dying Konoha Chunin. Eventually GaaraXOC. Being REwritten.
1. Unique Circumstances

"Team One: Dashiki Kashike, Tomomo Tomari, and Shizun Abiru." The three friends cheered, although the last of their group Tsuchino looked a bit disappointed not to be on his friends' squad. Isako watched him brighten though when Haisho-sensei continued.

"Team Two: Amakato Tsuchino, Arashi Nori, and Sanzo Keiko." Isako rolled her eyes at the boy's loud cheer at being put on the same team as her _older_ sister and the jealous looks the other boys sent him. Nori just smiled her lips quirking slightly in a satisfied kind of way. Isako knew what brought that smile to her sister's lips and the gleam in her cobalt eyes. Tsuchino, like so many other males, drooled over her and worshipped the ground she walked on and Keiko, shy timid Keiko, hero worshipped Nori for her confidence and skills. They would be wrapped around her sister's delicate fingers and follow her orders without fail. Her sister really did love getting her way.

Isako shifted into a more comfortable position on the grainy seat. At least one fear had been assuaged she wouldn't have to face her sister bossing her around on a mission. The only thing worse would have been being on _his_ team. Something everyone feared. Being on a team with Sabaku no Gaara was the worst fear of this year's Genin. Isako felt the fellow Genin tense along with her as Haisho-sensei began to speak again.

"Team Three: Genji Amarante, Daishi Tamasine, and Arashi Isako." Haisho-sensei said calmly, ignoring the gasps that spread like a ripple in water through the room. Isako blinked once as shocked as anyone. An heir to a clan being paired with a first generation and second generation ninja of only average Chunin, it was unheard of. The two were practically civilians with their knowledge of the shinobi. Especially considering she just happened to be an heir of the most affluent family, short of the Kazekage, and sometimes not even stopping there. Nori was the first to recover.

"What?" she shouted indignantly rising to her feet, eyes flashing, fists clenched with righteous, in her opinion, fury. Haisho-sensei looked at the girl warningly, which of course her sister ignored.

"She is the heir of the Arashi family, sensei! My father's successor, not some civilian playing ninja! How can you even think to put an Arashi with a second generation, much less a first generation shinobi? Only an imbecile would allow such an atrocity." Nori snarled, Isako inhaled sharply watching Haisho-sensei's eyes widen and then narrow dangerously. He was practically reeking with killing intent at the insult to his character. The room held their breath, knowing that despite his usually kind air their teacher was still a full fledged shinobi of Suna and a dangerous one at that, his temper was well known and now Nori, one of his least favorite students, was testing it.

"Nori!" Isako warned catching her sister's attention before she could dig her grave any deeper. Nori turned to Isako glare still on her face.

"What?" she snapped, clearly unhappy with Isako's lack of usual formality.

"Stop this now." Isako ordered calmly, glancing at Haisho-sensei from the corner of her eye. He watched the exchange intently. Nori's eyes flashed angrily, Isako had never told her sister what to do before, it would have been foolish, knowing how little her sister's opinion of her was.

"Don't you order me around Isako." Nori ordered, eyes turning back to narrow at Haisho-sensei. "He has given an insult to our family. Pairing you up with-"

"Nori, stop this foolishness you shame our family and yourself with this spectacle." Isako said crisply meeting her sister's shocked gaze with her own cold one. Nori's eyes narrowed in confusion, she'd taken their father's teachings to heart and would defend the family honor against anything, it was as basic to her as breathing. Isako wanted to scold her sister for being so silly, but instead held her gaze until the older girl sat down reluctantly, still stunned that her normally quiet younger sister had scolded her, _her_, for defending the family and Isako from an insult. Nori shrugged it off, still feeling a little disturbed. When had little Isako learned to use her father's tone so easily?

Isako turned to a calm Haisho-sensei feeling a bit annoyed by her sister's actions. Did she want her to have a bad start with her teammates, by making them think she thought herself superior to them? Isako gave herself a mental shake, no Nori honestly thought that the family honor was being insulted. She groaned, suddenly regretting scolding her sister in such a public manner, her father would no doubt see it as shameful, but what was done was done.

"I'm sorry, Haisho-sensei." Isako said, embarrassed, giving a slight bow, lower than strictly necessary. Nori gave a distastefully sound, but remained basically silent. Haisho-sensei gave a nod of acceptance and went back to reading the team listings. Isako allowed her face to fall into her hands, groaning inwardly. This was lovely, she thought bitterly, feeling the stares burning into her. Her teammates, names that were only distantly familiar, with no faces attached in her memory, definitely already hated her. After all if first impressions were important she'd royally screwed hers up, thanks to her sister. Plus she'd be dealing with father later. Isako sighed looking up to watch her sensei tell them they'd be meeting their teams and Jonin instructors tomorrow.

… … … … … …

Isako walked out of the house quietly nervously watching the shadows, charka taut as it searched the house for signs that Nori had decided to follow her. Although her father had amended Nori for defending the honor of the family he had in the end agreed with Isako this time, about showing distaste for lesser shinobi being unwise, since they would have to learn to deal with them eventually. Nori had listened wide eyed believing every disgusting word her father had spewed and then left seeming thoughtful at the lesson, leaving Isako alone to receive her _scolding_ for showing dissension in the family order, by embarrassing her sister. Isako rubbed her shoulder absently, flinching at the tenderness of the bruise. Her shoulder muscles were stiff and pained from the extra sparring her father and she had done after she'd been scolded so he could make sure the lesson had sunk in. Do not argue with a senior family member.

Isako sighed with relief as she stepped into the hot sun. Nori had really left already to meet up with Tsuchino and Keiko to be introduced to their sensei. Isako had actually thought her sister would have carried through with the threat to make sure the _lesser_ members of her team knew their place. Isako rolled her shoulders ignoring the pain as she tried to rid herself of the stiffness, even flowing her charka to the spot in an attempt to help. The pain become shallower, and a bit more bearable, but she knew that what she really needed was a nice massage to work out the tension. She stretched her arm backwards delicately trying not to make her muscles go any tauter than they already were, and prodded her back gently with the tips of her fingers to loosen the knots as her feet led her down a familiar path to the academy.

The sand colored building loomed over the smaller ones and Isako suddenly felt a pang in her gut as her hand drifted up to her hitai-ite, fingers tracing the symbol of Sunagakure emblazed there. Her fingers felt the groves amongst the smooth unblemished metal, feeling pleasantly warm in the sun, were it was tied around her forearm. It made Isako smile, and feel a pleasant twang of pride at her accomplishment. She'd earned her spot through hard work and sweat, and she'd kept working even when she failed. She'd wanted to graduate for herself not her name, and she had. It gave her enough courage to open the door and head towards the room her team waited in. She paused outside the door, before steeling her nerves and pushing it open.

The two occupants of the room looked up curiously. Isako wanted to shift under their gazes, but instead kept her face impassive and examined them with equal intent. The boy was dressed in dark brown and red tones with thick red gloves on his hands not unlike the type Jonin wore, his hitai-ite hung around his throat on a red band. He fingered it lightly, his narrowed brown eyes taking Isako in under a mop of dark brown hair. He had a pleasant face dusted lightly with slight color, but hardly olive toned like herself, that she would have said was handsome, if it wasn't for the unpleasant curl in his lips and disdain in his eyes as he took her in. Thankfully the girl was much more pleasant. She was dressed in yellow shorts and white sleeveless shirt with a collar that button upped, over this she wore a yellow sash with pockets along the fronts, that cut across her chest, tied around her waist was her own hitai-ite. The girl was beautiful, with pale creamy skin, shoulder length sandy blond hair that looked like silk with an ajo flower resting in it white petals open, full pink lips, delicate bone structure, and wide golden green eyes framed by pale gold lashes. She watched Isako with considerable warmth, instead of the boy's coldness.

"Genji Amarante," she chirped cheerfully, sliding off the desk and bounding over to Isako with a wide smile. "And you must be Isa-chan! The scowling one in the corner is Tama-kun."

"My name is Daishi Tamasine," the other boy growled glaring at Amarante. She rolled her eyes at him.

"You can call me Ama-kun, oh and before you say something potentially embarrassing I'm a boy, and yes my parents did give me a girl name." _he_ informed her happily, before grabbing her hand, ignoring the way her body stiffened at the contact and pulled her into the room. Isako followed numbly. _Wait what? She was a he? He was even prettier than Nori! And- Wait had she just gotten called Isa-chan?_

"Er, nice to meet you." Isako muttered out surprised as she looked up at the gir-er, boy who was smiling kindly at her.

"Where's sensei?" she asked, not liking the scrutiny, even if he was being friendly at the moment. Ama looked thoughtful, but Tamasine snorted derisively at the comment. Isako frowned, her hopes had risen at Ama's greetings, but it seemed this one wasn't going to forgive her so quickly for her sister's actions. Knowing she needed to get this over with soon, she stepped around Ama and narrowed her eyes at the taller boy.

"Do you have a problem with me, Tamasine-san?" she questioned softly, her voice smooth. Tamasine glared at her in response and stepped around the desk he was leaning on, eyes gleaming, she could tell he'd been dying for a fight, ready to prove her sister's words wrong. He stepped foreword slowly, almost gracefully, eyes locked with hers in the intense stare of two lovers or two people about to slit the others throat, a stare so intense it was as if there was nobody else in the world. Isako raised her chin defiantly purple eyes icy, while Tamasine's brown were as hot as the midday desert sun.

"Well, Daishi-san?" she questioned silkily, stepping closer to him. He may have towered over her, but she was hardly a pushover despite her size and she was not about to allow this boy to intimidate her. His eyes flashed with a bit of respect, before his mouth twisted into a mocking smirk.

"How about I show you how wrong your estimation of my skills are Arashi?" he shot back equally mocking, pointedly not using the honorific, and stepping foreword to close the distance between them, they were now chest to chest. Isako's hand rested lightly on her thigh, on her shurikan holder casually, but the tension that hung between the scant inch that separated them made it far from casual. She didn't want to fight her new teammate, but she flat out refused to have to deal with crap because of something she hadn't even said.

"Now guys we're teammates, there's no reason to fight before we even know each other." scolded Ama with a frown, gold-green eyes concerned. "If sensei sees you guys you'll be in trouble." he continued looking back and forth between them. Isako took a measured step back, ignoring the sneer on Tamasine's lips.

"I agree with you completely Ama-san." Isako said calmly, hand drifting into her pocket. The slight respect disappeared from Tamasine's eyes, and he smirked viciously.

"Seems Arashi isn't so brave after-" began Tamasine, eyes a bit disappointed, but completely mocking.

"You misunderstand Daishi-san." Isako told him voice practically frigid. Ama's eyes widened as she shifted her feet, shurikan in her hand as she fell into a familiar fighting stance. Tamasine blinked before breaking into a wide grin.

"Now you're talking." Tamasine growled, lowering himself into an almost identical stance, he had an eager glint in his wide brown eyes. They moved at the same time.

"Wait stop-" Ama began to shout seeing they were serious. Isako threw her shurikan only to be blocked with a kunai. Isako barely dodged the kunai that Tamasine threw hidden in the shadow of the one that had blocked her shurikan with ease, he was testing her reflexes, she realized. A smile twisted onto her face at his surprised face at her speed. She quickly darted across the room, using his surprise to her advantage. She'd show him to underestimate an opponent. The first hit connected with a dull thunk against his cheek. He grabbed her kick though, twisting it, Isako used her other foot to spring turning in the air and using the momentum to kick him with her other foot. Or she would have if a hand hadn't circled her ankle jerking her away from his grip and tossing her across the room. Isako's stunned mind barely gave her enough time to tense in preparation for the impact. _This is going to hurt,_ she thought mentally wincing, as she realized her bruise would hit first. But instead of the jarring painful impact she'd expected her body hit something warm and squishy that fell backwards with startled gasp. Isako bit back a gasp, though Ama's body was preferable to the ground, it still brought back her ache.

"Now, now kiddies, I'm all for a good fight, but not with your comrades." a cheerful voice scolded them. Head dizzy with the sudden pain, Isako, didn't realize Ama had sat her up and was now watching her worriedly. He moved the arm that had caught her, accidentally brushing her back as he did, causing a hiss of pain to escape her clenched teeth. Isako didn't see how his eyes narrowed troubled into green slits. Her attention was focused on the woman in front of her.

Isako wondered distantly what had just touched her, but was too focused to investigate. The woman who'd thrown her was holding a wide eyed Tamasine by his collar. She smiled giving a pleased nod seeing Isako sitting up. The woman had close cropped sandy hair similar to Ama's, only hers bore an orange tint and was spiky instead of a mop cap of silk. Her teal eyes examined them twinkling brightly. Her mouth was wearing a wide grin and she had laugh wrinkles, her outfit was that befitting a kunoichi, tan pants just past her knees, a deep red short sleeve that seemed skin tight, covered with a tan vest, she wore gloves with metal on them, and her hitai-ite stood out proudly against her bangs. Her build was thin, tall, and springy, the muscles in her calves visible under her peach toned skin. She looked to be in her mid-twenties. Isako realized who she was.

"Sorry Sensei." Isako told her contritely, quickly jumping to her feet when she realized she was touching Ama. She suppressed a shiver at the contact.

"Ah, don't worry," the woman told them pleasantly, dropping Tamasine to skip, _skip_, over to her students, her eyes grew serious though as she bent down to look Isako in the eye. "And don't call me Sensei unless we're in front of others and have to keep with protocol, it makes me feel old." she confided secretively, before her face split back into her warm grin. "Come on Mister Cranky we're going to the roof to talk." she shouted over her shoulder cheerfully as she threw open the door, going out humming a song to herself. Isako threw Ama a questioning look to see if he understood why their sensei was acting so peculiar, but found him watching her with an uneasy expression in his eyes.

"Something wrong?" she questioned, not liking his probing eyes. Ama quickly hid his emotions sensing he was making her uncomfortable and shook his head, walking towards her with a smile. Isako paused slightly at the door wanting to press her point, seeing how his eyes still seemed weird, despite the warm smile, but simply shrugged it off. She had her own secrets, she'd let Ama keep his.

"Come on Tama-kun," the boy shouted as they exited the room. Isako sighed, watching the numb boy stand up quickly, scowling as his cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"Don't call me that, Genji." he ordered rudely. Isako was tempted to start on him just for how he spoke to the kind boy who'd done nothing to him, but was stopped by Ama's happy nod of acknowledgement, as he turned as if he hadn't just been disrespected. Isako turned walking down the hall, not wanting to have to deal with Tamasine's hostility. Ama, quickly caught up to her falling in step beside her as they quickly climbed the stairs, hearing their sensei's impatient shouting.

"Why the roof?" Tamasine questioned irritably as they sat down cross-legged in a circle with the woman. She paused looking thoughtful frowning as she did, then a smile graced her face as she snapped her fingers together clearly pleased with her deduction.

"Because I said so and you three are now my minions and there for have to do everything I say no matter how unreasonable, now be quiet Mister Cranky," ("Tamasine!" the boy protested.) "So we can introduce ourselves." scolded the woman pleasantly, "Now tell us your name, your favorite color, your dream, what you hate, and a fun fact." The three Genin shared a look perfectly in agreement that their sensei was crazy.

"Eh, how about you go first Sensei?" Ama suggested after a few moments of her expectant silence, causing the woman to scowl and mutter expletives at the hated word 'sensei'.

"Fine," she agreed with a dramatic long suffering sigh, "My name, my adorable minions, is Asai Kimi, my favorite color is blue, today anyway, and I hate dango and tomatoes. I don't really feel like telling you my dreams. Uh, fun fact, I once ate thirty servings of miso ramen in a row, though Gai still beat me by fitting in that one last bite, I blame the gray haired weirdo for using the 'C' word." Asai, informed them, grumbling about gray haired weirdos for a few moments before remembering them.

"Okay, now you flower-child." said Asai pleasantly. Ama nodded, his blinking slightly more than normal being the only sign he was as disturbed by their surprising sensei as the rest of them.

"I'm Genji Amarante, but you can call me Ama. My favorite color is yellow," he smiled gesturing to his outfit, "I don't really hate anything, er, my dream is to become a great shinobi, with my own special brand of Ninjutsu and Genjutsu," Isako inched away slightly at the downright evil smirk that graced the boy's lips. One thing was sure Ama was far from the push over he seemed like. "And my fun fact is well, oh I got it, this flower is one of my most deadly weapons."

"_Right_," Tamasine snorted sarcastically, with an eye roll. Asai frowned at him and faster than they could blink flicked him on the nose hard enough to knock him over.

"Rule one, my minions will be polite." she told them cheerfully, as she poked Tamasine in the forehead. The boy glared up at her lying on his back, but wisely remained silent. Asai grinned crookedly and Isako looked up at Ama, biting her lip to suppress a laugh. The boy looked exasperated and quickly leaned over offering Tamasine a helpful hand. Isako thought at first the prideful boy would slap it away, judging from his scowl, but one look at Asai's eager expression and he hurriedly accepted.

"Well Mister Cranky, since you so graciously volunteered." Asai told the grumbling boy, who looked like he'd given up on correcting her on the nickname. The boy sat down cross-legged on the opposite side of Ama, glaring at Isako as he spoke.

"Name's Daishi Tamasine," he told them pronouncing the name slowly, as if speaking to a child, while he gave Asai a very pointed look, which she blatantly ignored. "I don't have a favorite color, my dreams are my own business, and I hate," he turned to peer at Isako with warning brown eyes, "People who underestimate my abilities. You aren't getting a fun fact, whatever that is."

_Translation, he hates me and will only tolerate the others,_ Isako thought pessimistically. Ama nodded smiling benignly at the taller boy, while Asai was giving him a strangely serious look, that made Isako sure their sensei was planning something.

"Alright, time for purple-eyes." Asai said turning to watch Isako curiously. Isako meet their gazes calmly, despite the urge to look away at the stares.

"Arashi Isako is my name. I like red. I hate people who don't even bother to get to know the person and just assume their like everyone else who they group that person with." Isako told them in a smooth even voice, and seeing Ama's gentle smile, continued to explain. "Like thinking all blonds are dumb, thinking all wealthy people are snobs and thinking just because that person's family believes one way they do to." Isako paused not looking at Tamasine and wondered rather or not to tell them her dream. Well, she decided, it couldn't hurt. "My dream is to become a kunoichi of my own right and not to allow my family to label what I am." Isako realized her defiant tone too late. Asai looked at her with the same probing serious expression she'd examined Tamasine with, and Ama looked thoughtful. Isako wilted, under the intense scrutiny, but didn't show it outside. "I suppose my _fun fact_," she said the word uncertainly, "Would be that I want to become a medic nin." Isako sat down, shutting up instantly, pointedly refusing to look at their reactions. The silence carried for a few minutes.

"Well, go on you three, report here tomorrow, same time, for your first mission." Asai told them happily, and then gave Ama a serious look. "Ama-kun you're my favorite, sanest one of the bunch." And with a mocking smile, their sensei disappeared in a wind tunnel.

"Well she's nuts." Tamasine said, jutting them out of their silence. Isako didn't acknowledge the comment as she stood, wincing slightly, when she used her arm to push herself up. The bruise had started to steadily begin to ache as the day had progressed and after using her muscles during her brief fight with Tamasine they were stiff too.

"She isn't nuts Tama-" Ama began his green eyes scolding, before noticing Isako's involuntary flinch and turning quickly. "Is something wrong Isa-chan?" Isako shook her head quickly, but Tamasine interrupted her protests with a scornful snort.

"If Arashi's worn out from that little fight, then she'll be a pathetic kunoichi, weak and useless." he told them scathingly. Isako froze and turned to look at the boy. He continued cruelly, seeing he'd caught her attention. "You're from the wealthiest and most influential clan in Suna. They _had_ to pass you no matter how abysmal a shinobi you really were. You never had to work hard to get where you are." Isako could have taken anything else this vicious boy had said, but as she stared down at the roof, her blood pounded faster. How had he known exactly what words would cut her heart so badly? Isako felt a tremble go through her arm as she clenched her fist, looking up at Tamasine murderously. He thought she hadn't worked hard? She'd worked harder than anyone, to get this far! "Just look at your sister, if that's the type of kunoichi you're going to be then you don't deserve that hitai-ite." Isako, drew in her breath sharply at that, remembering who'd spoken almost those exact words not hours ago, and her heart ripped at the memory. Without thinking she stepped foreword and backhanded the boy right into the rooftop, with strength brought on by rage.

He looked up eyes flashing as murderously as she'd been only to grow confused at her frozen form. Isako looked at her hand horrified. She knew exactly how hard that loud slap had hurt, true she didn't have as much weight behind it as the one's she'd gotten, but she knew she'd hit the spot that made you dizzy when you hit the ground, and his jaw had connected with the sickening sound of flesh meeting rock. Isako's breath stopped, consumed with self disgust. What was wrong with her today? Attacking Tamasine just for a few words? It had been different earlier, they'd both been expecting it, it had been fair. This was different. She knew, just by seeing his moves earlier if she'd tried this before he'd hardly have gone down. Besides there was something so…degrading about being backhanded. What was she her father? Her head spun in horror.

The gentle hand on her shoulder made her flinch away violently, both from the contact of someone else and the fact he'd touched her bruise. Isako inhaled deeply, looking at Ama, horror still painted clearly on her face. His was serious.

"I was right, you are hurt aren't you? On your shoulder?" he questioned in a soft whisper so only she could hear. Isako felt scared of those disturbingly caring green eyes and turned around running away, despite Tamasine's shout of "Coward!"

… … … … … …

"Isako!" a familiar was shouted right before Nori threw open the locked door. Isako began to sit up slowly, but decided against it feeling her muscles protest, giving a polite nod in her sister's direction she laid back down. Nori curled her blond hair around one of her fingers absentmindedly examining the semi-bare room, before her blue eyes rested on the tired form of her younger sibling.

"Yes Onee-san?" Isako asked politely.

"Good you remembered your manners this time," Nori said pleasantly, and unceremoniously dropped something on Isako's stomach. She looked down surprised it was a green jar. The girl looked up, but her sister had already left. Isako absently opened the jar and sniffed the green paste inside cautiously. It smelled of herbs, mint, and orange, oddly pleasant.

Isako sat it down staring at it suspiciously. She'd seen things like this before, Ayame, her oldest sister, would make salves for bruises, but this wasn't her sister's special blend. Ayame's always smelled faintly of crushed irises. Then who could it be from? Isako trailed her calloused finger along the jar's edge thoughtful. It didn't seem to be poisonous, not that she'd know from smelling it and looking at it, but she couldn't think of anyone who'd benefit from killing her. With a sigh Isako slipped off her shirt and gently began to massage the paste into her skin.

The effect was almost instant. A tingling sensation started to spread across were her fingers touched and a cold seeped in to the skin numbing the pain and making her hair stand on end at the odd feeling of numbing cold, while the rest of her was blistering hot in comparison. Isako shivered slightly as the feeling subsided into soothing warmth, before switching back to a tingling coolness and staying at that temperature. Isako stretched her neck craning back and gasping. The bruise, which had been an ugly violent purple was fading into a soft pink scar tint. The parts she touched first were already turning back to her olive tone although it was a few shades lighter then her normal, but the difference wasn't very big. Isako turned to look down at the jar eyes wide with wonderment. Who would give _her_ this gift? It was worth ten times its weight in gold. Isako continued starring at it for a few moments, before a breath of wind blew through her window, that she'd had open hoping to tempt a breeze. It reminded her of her state of undress and though her family lived on the edge of Suna and there was no chance of her being seen it felt immodest. Isako pulled back on her shirt, thoughts consumed with who and why she'd been sent such an amazing gift, plus how much it would take that person, once she found them, for she would, to give her the recipe.


	2. Fire and Ice

Isako felt a heavy stone settle itself in her chest as she saw Tamasine dart out from his hiding place to launch himself at the target. He wasn't listening to orders, again. Isako felt a wave of anger and frustration roll over her. It had been a month since they'd first become Team Three and Tamasine's sarcastic comments, hostile attitude, and disdain for her only seemed to have grown. He refused to listen to her when Asai assigned her mission leader, for the menial D-rank missions and only grudgingly listened to Ama. They'd failed half the ones they'd gotten thanks to his stubbornness. And as much as she cursed Tamasine's lack of understanding, Isako knew it was as much her fault as his. If only she'd kept her anger in check. But it was too late now and she was not about to let this boy ruin another mission for them.

Isako darted out, using her full sped for once and quickly came beside Tamasine and overtook the startled boy. She heard his growl behind her but ignored as she felt her limbs loosened and the endorphins burst in her brains as she felt the joy of running, something not even Tamasine could ruin. She felt civilians turn and stare as she passed, her and the chasing boy only blurs. Isako smiled slightly seeing her target and scooped him up gently, before darting around and running back to where Asai was waiting. When she met with Tamasine on the way back he froze, face clouding with embarrassment to see her having beat him and turned to follow her.

It quickly became a race. The loose parts of Isako's clothes catching the wind and keeping her cool, while the rest clung to her tightly, she could sense Tamasine nipping at her heels trying to match her speed, only to start to lose stamina and fall further and further behind. Isako jumped from building to building gracefully landing in front of a startled Asai, who was chatting happily with Ama. Isako was panting, only very lightly though, and was disappointed that she hadn't had enough distance to work up a sweat, but felt pleased with herself nonetheless.

"Here he is." she told Asai, offering her the particularly large shockingly orange cat. The woman looked a bit shocked, but smiled giving a barking laugh.

"That's what I'm talking about!" she chirped with an eager grin looking at Isako with a fierce pride in her teal eyes as she examined the girl. Isako, still feeling giddy from her run, and feeling pleasant warmth at pleasing her sensei, gave a rare warm smile. Isako felt a prickle of awareness as the loudly panting Tamasine arrived. Isako turned to the panting boy, to find his brown eyes wide, she felt her smile falter slightly, becoming a bit bashful at the boy who normally hated her, but he wasn't glaring at her now. In fact he looked almost admiring, shocked, insultingly shocked, but mildly admiring.

"How can you run like that?" he gasped out crouching down and craning his neck back to look at her. Isako felt the growingly familiar warmth spread back as she gave him a timid smile.

"I've just always been fast." she admitted modestly. Tamasine opened his mouth to comment, but his eyes flickered to the cat and he snapped shut with an audible snap, eyes darkening slightly. Isako felt herself deflate and her smile fade.

"You're amazing Isa-chan!" Ama congratulated quickly pulling her to talk to her some more. Isako felt a cold sort of feeling settle in her. _He's never gonna like me is he?_ She wondered despairingly at the cold look in his eyes. Isako turned forcing herself to listen to Ama not realizing that two someones had noticed her expression and both of them decided to do something about it.

… … … … … …

"A C-ranked mission?" Isako gasped out, looking at Ama mouth wide. The boy grinned from his place in her windowsill. Isako had been embarrassed when Ama had suddenly appeared out of nowhere and quickly blocked his view of her room. It wasn't like she had any underwear or something equally embarrassing lying around, but that didn't mean she wasn't self-conscious about her only friend-_a boy at that_-seeing inside it. The first words out of Ama's mouth though had her moving away and letting him in, curious eyes and all.

"Yep, Asai just got our team requested we'll be heading out in the morning." He told her sitting beside her casually as his eyes took in the cream colored walls lined with bookshelves and few things she'd picked up over the years. It was plain and neat she realized squirming nervously as he continued his thorough exam.

"A lot cleaner than Tama-kun's," he complimented eyes sparkling. Isako let out a sigh she hadn't realized she'd held. She quickly berated herself, for caring if Ama found her odd and dull. But she couldn't help, but feel a tiny glow at the easy acceptance of her sanctuary, he'd accepted, yet another part of her, like he had her peculiar eye color, her hatred for touching, and all her little quirks he was quickly discovering. It made her feel vulnerable that this boy was so quickly digging his way into her life and how she opened up to him so easily, but it was pleasant all the same to have someone who was there and accepted her.

"I would hope so," she joked back, making him smile widely.

"You told a joke!" he gasped out pleased, leaning foreword causing their noses to bump together. Isako stiffened jerking back more violently than the little contact deserved. When she looked up at him flushing pink, she found him several feet away, smiling at her apologetically. Isako straightened slightly, feeling hot with embarrassment at how relieved she was by the distance. This was Ama, she could trust him. She scolded, but couldn't repress the feelings all the same.

"Sorry Isa-chan I forgot." he told her gentle, Isako nodded, feeling pink paint her cheeks. Ama sat down slowly beside her and remained silent a few moments to allow her to get used to his nearness. Isako sighed heavily. Ama was very kind when it came to her…condition, as she referred to it. She grimaced at what Tamasine would have done if he found out.

"The mission?" Isako questioned after a few minutes of awkward silence. Ama nodded, the intense look in his eyes fading to a more serene gentleness she had become accustom to.

"We're leaving Sunakagure, and going to one of the border countries, Yugakure," Ama explained cheerfully, shifting his position on the bed excitedly. "We'll be guarding the villagers from some bandits that have been raiding them until a team of jonin can be freed of to take them out. Asai-sensei says it'll take at least a month or more so we all have to get permission from our parents for an extended stay. We're leaving tomorrow, same place same time." Ama suddenly looked thoughtful. "My Oka-san will probably give me permission. Kohana's old enough to help in the flower shop." Isako's perked up curious. Ama grinned seeing her interest and leaned back on the bed arms sticking out in front of him, stretching lazily as he explained.

"Kohana's my little sister, she just turned seven." he explained, brightly.

"Does she look like you?" Isako asked leaning in without realizing it. Ama grinned in a way that told her this was one of his favorite subjects and his eyes glowed gold with pride.

"Yep, she has my eyes, but her hair's more honey colored than sandy, she also has my pink lips, looks a lot more flattering on her than me, though." he confided. "And she can already tell you most of the flowers and their meanings. Her favorite is hibiscus, it symbolizes rare beauty. She's decided to be a florist when she gets older instead of following in her big brother's footsteps. Chisaki, she's four, though has decided she's going to become a kunoichi and then Kazekage." Isako felt a smile curl on her lips at the warm affectionate tone that crept into his voice and happiness in his eyes.

Isako's mind quickly came back to reality though when a loud clattering was heard down the hall. She froze, blood turning icy. She looked up at Ama horrified and quickly grabbed his wrist panicked and all but threw him through the window. Ama quickly turned around to face her, though planting his feet firmly in the sill. He looked down at her alarmed, but it quickly turned to worry at her horrified expression.

"What is it Isako? Is something wrong? Did I do something?" he shot out worriedly, instinctively reaching out for her, only to have her quickly move away. His hand froze, quickly, retreating as he leaned back giving her plenty of room and looked at her concerned.

Isako turned towards her door gesturing for him to be silent as she listened, probing with chakra as she did. Her senses told her Ama stiffened as her searching chakra brushed him. Isako ignored the sensation of his shivering from what she new was a surprisingly cool brush as she spread to find that whoever it had been, that had made the noise. Isako locked in, and sighed out relieved to find it was a chakra signature almost as familiar as Nori's. It was just little Nami, one of her nieces, sneaking off to the kitchen, probably attempting to hide from her nursemaid. The girl appeared to be heading in the opposite direction, they were safe.

"Good news?" Ama whispered, his breath tickling the back of her neck, making the goose flesh on her neck stand up. She turned surprised at the proximity, not having realized she'd leaned back towards the window when she found it was just one of the little ones. Ama was wearing his normal smile, but his eyes were odd, greener, almost dark emerald and wide with some unknown emotion.

"It's fine. I heard something, it was just one of my nieces." she explained voice quiet, watching surprised as Ama's eyes turned back to their normal gold-green. He nodded looking thoughtful, though a little peculiar still, he glanced up at her smiling. Isako returned it relieved.

"Now why did you attempt to throw me out a window?" he asked in a soft teasing voice, lowering it to match hers. Isako's smile quickly disappeared at those words.

"It would be highly inappropriate for the female heir to the Arashi family to be found with a male who is not her relative in her bedroom." she said in a cool monotone, Ama's pupils widened slightly.

"You don't actually think they'd suspect-" he began horrified.

"Doesn't matter if they thought we'd done something wrong or not," she cut in briskly eyes cold. "Father is very strict about this particular rule. Not even Nori dares break it, anymore at least."

"She had a guy in her room?" Ama asked surprised. Isako's eyes flashed up at his skeptical tone.

"You sound surprised." Isako stated. She'd heard some of the older girls when they'd heard about Nori getting in trouble, they'd been very cruel. They'd regretted it though, Isako thought with a sardonic smirk.

"Yes, Nori is very pretty and many of the boy's like her, but she's always kept her distance from them, she seems to have difficulty forming attachments to people." Ama explained thoughtfully, shocking and pleasing Isako with his observation. _This is why you like him so much_, her mind told her happily,_ he tries to understand people and never takes them at face value. And he accepts them_.

"You're right. Matsu was her best friend and they were only ten. It was the first time I've ever seen her get into a fight with Father." Isako told him, mind numbing as she remembered how her sister had cried and raged when he'd ordered her never to see him again. It was also the first time Father had tried to strike her, their older sister had stopped him though sending both girls out of the room to talk with him. Ama's eyes shown with recognition.

"I remember him, he was always giving her sad looks and graduated two years ago, he's taking the chunin exams next time." the boy commented. Isako nodded not surprised.

"That's one of the reasons Nori didn't graduate that year, he didn't want her reputation sullied by being on the same team as him." Isako explained looking down at her hands that were clenched together in her lap.

"You think he'll keep us separated if he hears about this?" Isako nodded at the gentle words. Ama paused, seeming to be trying to think of how to ask his next question. Isako looked up at him miserably from under her black bangs. The boy finally spoke, looking frustrated and confused. "Why is he so obsessed with this?"

"Don't you know?" Ama shook his head eyes suddenly apprehensive. Isako felt her lips twist in a resentful smile as her insides went bitterly cold. "We're pawns to sell to the highest bidder. His children are his ultimate bargaining chip to make alliances. Do you remember a few years back when that really wealthy merchant decided to start dealing exclusively in Sunagakure?" He nodded, eyes seeming to understand where this was going but watched her for confirmation. "To get him to agree to it and to encourage his partners to make similar deals, one of my older sisters, Sachi, was arranged to marry him. His a horrible man who mostly ignores her and takes mistresses when ever he feels it necessary, they have five children, four girls and one boy. He almost filed for divorce before Yoshi was born. The girls all live here in Suna with us. Sachi thought they'd be happier here and visits whenever she can. They don't even remember their father's face." She finished her last words a whisper so low she wasn't sure he heard.

"A marriage of convenience." Ama whispered in silent horror. Isako nodded. Ama's eyes were upset, but he still seemed confused. "But you have other siblings correct? Why is he so focused on you and Nori?" Isako sighed, her heart hurt, and she felt the cold stone in her abdomen, but she wanted, needed to tell Ama this, to siphon off some of her unhappy memories just a little. She felt guilty for her selfishness, but continued.

"His son and former heir Makoto married a poor Daimyo daughter in the Land of Waves, forfeiting his birth right. His brother died years ago so father was left without a male heir, so it passed on to the oldest female, our sister Ayame." Ama nodded eyes dawning with realization, his pale pink lips forming an 'O' of surprise.

"That explains why he had a female heir, Oka-san said it was unusual." He commented and nodded for her to continue. Isako did, heart still heavy.

"Ayame married someone he found beneath her and was disowned, by now Sachi was married off and only Nori and I remained. He decided to pass on the title of heir to me, another part of Nori's punishment, and was determined to make sure we had the best matches possible to make for his children that, he felt, shamed our good name." Isako felt her eyes narrow and knew they were getting colder, at the memories and knowledge of the future that was planned for her. She didn't meet Ama's eyes, clenching and unclenching her fists in an effort to hold down her anger. She looked up at Ama relaxing slightly at his calm expressive green eyes looked over her with a small frown.

"It explains a lot," he reflected with a slight frown eyes suddenly troubled, his eyes rose though to look over Isako with an emotion she hadn't seen in regard to herself in a long while. Sympathy and caring. He lifted his hand only to stop looking at her questioningly. Isako gave a slight shake of her head, but smiled. Ama nodded and quickly crawled back into the window once more. He turned and gave her a parting smile.

"Go and ask your-" Ama stopped and he suddenly wore a dangerous look, eyes narrowed and a cold golden color. "Tell _that man_ about your mission." Isako nodded, surprised by the deadly expression that the boy who always radiated patience, serenity and compassion wore. Isako noticed that the flower he wore seemed to ripple violently. Not for the first time Isako wondered how her blond friend manipulated flowers in his jutsu.

"I will," she told him quietly, "I'll see you tomorrow." Ama nodded and turned to leave only to pause. The boy turned to her face conflicted, before taking a deep breath and looking the girl in the eye.

"You're my friend Isako," he said firmly, eyes blazing emerald, pointedly using her name. He took another breath and said in a thick voice. "I just thought you should know."

"I do know," she told him feeling a warmth and happiness surge through her heart. "Thank you for that." Ama nodded and parted with a rather sad smile.

… … … … … …

Isako waited outside the open door patiently. Her father sat across the room his seat turned so that his back was to her. She saw through the window it was a calm night, no sand gusting around carried by the wind. The navy blue slice of sky she saw also revealed a few early stars appearing. Her eyes flickered back to her father, feeling the calm in the air. Calm before the storm as they said. Isako pulled up her familiar emotionlessly cold façade, fighting to cut off her emotions. She'd learned this was the best way to deal with her father. Do not react. For her father was as unpredictable as the storms they so aptly took their name from. Finally the man, hidden by the chair turned to look at his daughter and gave her permission to enter with a slight dipping of his head. Isako dutifully entered the familiar room, closing the door behind her and walked across its length to stop a few feet from his desk.

Her father always preferred it this way, making those who visited stand, while he peered at them from the only seat in the room. It was a base form of showing who was in control. He smiled a cold, unfeeling smile at his youngest child, it was just a slight cruel twist in his lips nothing more. He leaned foreword, blue eyes inquiring in their icy depths; one blond eyebrow raised just a fraction. Isako could not understand how someone could trust this man, could be charmed into believing he was the kind, well-spoken, intelligent face he put on for the public. His entire essence protested against the desert, from his ice colored gaze, to his winter skin, to the frigid brush of his touch. This man was ice, something unusual and monstrous. Isako knew she'd inherited some of his ice, but while he revealed in it, she fought against it and revealed in the blistering heat, the constant struggle, and the determination that was involved in desert life. Her mother had been of the desert. She'd been as hot and unpredictable as it, burning with passion, but kind and soft, yet unforgiving at times. Isako knew this from the stories that she'd heard countless of them. And she felt an ache for the woman that had died during her birth. Isako though had her own fire to fight against her father's ice now. And it was all thanks to Ama, he had no idea how much courage and peace his acknowledgement and gentle acceptance of her brought the girl. Her desolate coldness that had grown from the loneliness was slowly being replaced by his friendship. And it was because of him she felt brave enough to face her father.

"What is it Isako?" he questioned looking through her though his eyes were trained on her directly. This didn't surprise the girl, the man had done this as long as she could remember. The one time she'd mentioned it to Nori, back when her sister had been kinder, Nori had said he did the same thing to Ayame, who was the only other of the siblings to inherit their mother's purple gaze.

"I've been given my first C-rank mission, Father." she told him respectfully. Her skin crawled as he leaned foreword eyes focusing on her as his fingers were lazily brought together. Isako's eyes were drawn to the slight movement and she barely repressed a tremor at the sight of those long elegant fingers. When she looked up, he was looking at her, really looking at her and not through her. It was unnerving to find those eyes trained on her for the first time in her life and she realized why. She'd always assumed her father's eyes were the exact same cobalt as her sister's but they weren't, it was just a hint, barely noticeable, but right along the pupils the blue took on a silver tone, as if he had a band of silver circling his pupils. The silver seemed to shine like a predator scenting prey. Isako looked away, not caring it was a sign of weakness, the fearful pounding of her heart was that of a bird caught in the eyes of a snake knowing it was about to die.

"It is about time." Her father spoke in a pleasant voice, significantly, falsely warm. "From what I here your team is quite skilled, but there seems to be a problem with one of your teammates. Daishi Tamasine I believe." The man paused his gaze intent on the girl, clearly waiting for her to answer. Isako for some reason was scared, no terrified, not for herself, he had too much relying on her for her to fear for her own life, but for Tamasine. What would the man do if he thought one insignificant Genin was ruining his heir's future? Isako didn't want to find out and gave into her insane urge to protect the boy.

"That's surprising." she told him in a monotone, keeping her eyes trained on the floor so he would not see the emotions behind them. "It is true the boy and I have had our, differences, I suppose, but we have come to an agreement to put them aside, in fact he seems to be warming up to me, just earlier he complimented my speed." Isako looked up at her father giving him a humble smile that was faked, not that he'd realize it was, or anyone who didn't know her completely, not even Ama would be able to. Her father wasn't very good at reading her any longer. _Buy it,_ her mind ordered desperately_, buy it you horrible man._ "Not that it's very surprising." she finished briskly, meeting the man's searching gaze. After a few moments of tension filled silence, the air relaxed and he leaned back, eyes pleased before adopting a planning look.

"I see, I suppose I'll have to speak with the person who gave me false information. They would say it was a Daishi." he told her casually, tapping his fingers together thoughtfully, as his mind whirled with plans, before his eyes flickered back to hers remembering the business at hand. "The mission?" he inquired lightly. Isako quickly explained in a detached voice of someone speaking to a superior and not their parent.

"I see," he drawled out slowly, eyes giving her one out of place curious look, before continuing. "You will be going of course. You are dismissed. I will inform the rest of the family of your absence in the morning." Isako bowed lowly, it was something that was an almost insult to her position as his heir, the only other person she was supposed to bow so low to was the Kazekage himself, and only if she was begging for something. Isako left relieved, but wondering at her father's cryptic comment. _They would say it was a Daishi._


	3. Point of Departure

Tamasine had been acting odd since that morning, but Isako didn't really notice it until Suna was out of view. It was the quiet that did it. Asai could be quiet when she was serious about something, Ama sometimes got quiet when he was very relaxed, Isako had been trained for silence since she was small, but Tamasine was never quiet. The boy was always talking it seemed. Even when he was leader in one of their missions, he spoke aloud as he planned. The unnatural silence put Isako on edge as they leapt across the sand, and she looked back at Tamasine alarmed realizing a perfect silence hung between their group now.

He looked troubled. His dark brown eyes upset and dim with their distant thoughts, his mouth sat in firm line, and his brow knit together tightly. Isako quickly looked at Ama to see if he noticed. Her steps faltering as she did. The movement caused Tamasine to look at her. Seeing the look on her face, his expression went blank, but not before a flash of uncertainty and pain went through those brown eyes. Isako watched as he sped up to flank Asai as he ran. The woman didn't look up, apparently absorbed with her own thoughts. This time nobody noticed Isako faltering to a startled stop for a few brief moments. What was going on? Her hazy mind wondered, both from lack of sleep last night and confusion. Not realizing she had stopped, she didn't start moving again until Ama through her a concerned glance. Isako quickly caught up, her thoughts absorbed with the same boy who'd occupied them last night.

He hadn't spoken one word to her, she realized with unease. She should have noticed before, but lack of sleep had a way of hazing someone's brain. It wasn't just his lack of sarcasm or insultingly familiar greetings of "Took you long enough Arashi!" that had been different either. He had barely glanced at her. He had been avoiding the others' gaze too, she noted, examining his red clothed back with his brown pack bouncing up and down to the rhythmic sprint. Isako thought back to the moment she'd arrived, he'd been talking to Ama, not that unusual, but now that she thought about it, he'd been upset even then, his eyes dark and torn as he heatedly whispered to the boy after barely glancing at Isako's arrival.

The odd behavior reminded her of her father's words, which had been one of the reasons her mind had been occupied most of the night. Daishi. She knew she'd heard it before, even before Tamasine had become her teammate. It was so frustrating that she couldn't remember! Isako's felt her brows knit together much like Tamasine's had, in irritation. She tried to recall all she remembered hearing about his family. She knew his parents had been average Chunin, who'd been remembered for their loyalty and bravery when they hadn't returned from a mission two years ago. Could they be the Daishi her father spoke of? But why? The family had only recently become Shinobi and though she'd never heard anything bad about them. They weren't high enough on the social hierarchy that existed subtly in Suna's shinobi for her father, a highly skilled clan head, to draw his interest. Hadn't his uncle also been a shinobi? Isako couldn't remember, but she was pretty sure it had been his uncle, or at least some other close family member who'd graduated the same year as his parents. Isako couldn't remember hearing anything else about a Daishi. Was it because he was not very skilled? Or because he was very elite? The thoughts haunted her as they made their way across the open desert.

… … … … … …

They decided to camp on the edges of the desert, the forest that marked the beginning of the lands they were going to enter visible at the bottom of the incline. In truth they could have made it into the forest for shelter easily before nightfall, but Asai had mercifully allowed the Genin one more night in familiar surroundings. Isako was practically faint with relief. The past few days had been tense enough with Tamasine's odd behavior, Ama's knowing glances, Asai's secretive quiet, and her own utter confusion at what was going on and annoyance with the others for keeping her out of the loop. Isako didn't think she could have taken staying in such a foreign environment on top of it all. She shivered leaning closer to the fire and pulling the jacket, with its tangy scent tighter around her.

Yesterday the temperature had started to drop as they began to see lands that housed Yugakure, and the already frigid desert nights had become almost artic temperature's to Isako's body. Unlike the others she seemed to be especially susceptible to the temperature change and Asai had worried over the shivering girl until she'd put on something warmer. She'd wound up in a large coat Tamasine had claimed his aunt had forced him to pack and a pair of thick black pants Isako had accidentally taken in her hazy packing the morning they'd left, over the clothes she already wore, which consisted of a black tank top, with fish net under it, a loose tunic styled white shirt that hung off her shoulders and her thin black capris. She was warmer now, but still hadn't fully adjusted, so she'd taken to sleeping close to the fire, though Ama disapproved.

"You are going to roll over in your sleep and light yourself on fire." he'd muttered disapprovingly the night before, which had prompted Tamasine's generosity. Isako had been not just surprised, but absolutely shell shocked at the thoughtful offer. Even more surprising it was his idea instead of an order from Asai or prompted by one of her dirty looks. He'd just looked over her pathetically shaking form and handed it over, with a stern look and ordered, "Put it on before you freeze." Even odder, instead of looking surprised by this development, the others had just shared a halfway smug (Asai) halfway relieved look (Ama). Isako sighed too tired to continue the brooding Ama had accused her of doing the past few days.

Stretching with a quick glance at her now sleeping teammates, she crawled over to wake Ama for his shift as look out. When the girl got to him though, she couldn't. He was so peaceful and so completely serene she couldn't bring herself to. True he hadn't been reacting quite as extreme as she had to the change of environment, but she knew he hadn't got a good night of sleep anytime these past few days. It was getting close to dawn, she decided, she could do a few more hours. Even with this thought her eyelids tried to shut and her body protested. Ignoring the exhaustion and sleep that clung to her limbs, she stumbled over to the fire and watched the stars with drooping eyes. Her head had fallen to her shoulder for the fifth time, when the exasperated sigh came from one of the sleeping bags. Surprisingly it was Tamasine, not surprising he was glaring at her.

"You're a pretty sucky look out if you keep falling asleep." he pointed out sitting up on his elbows as he watched her from the other side of the fireplace. "You're completely exhausted."

"I'm fine." Isako told him stubbornly. He raised an eyebrow and quickly shimmied out of his sleeping bag opting to sit on it.

"Yes, you're so fine and not tired you're head just can't stay up straight." he sneered, brown eyes looking at her bemused, when she ignored the comment and glared at the fire, repeating another stubborn, "I'm fine." The boy snorted and rolled onto his feet, walking over to where Ama slept.

"It's his turn now isn't it?" Tamasine asked more statement than question as he pointed to the blond boy. Isako scowled at him.

"No." she lied instantly. Tamasine raised his eyebrow a fraction higher and looked down at Ama's sleeping face. Comprehension flashed through his eyes. He turned to smirk at her, causing the girl to bristle.

"You couldn't wake him up, could you?" Isako didn't reply and his smirk grew. He turned his body around facing her with a deceivingly sweet look. "Would you like my help?" he asked innocently reaching for the blond boy. Isako was across the sand and holding his wrist before he had moved an inch.

"Don't," she hissed, and seeing his still amused expression and the slight mocking twitch in his lips she continued, quietly not wanting to wake the boy. "He hasn't been sleeping well, or really any, let him I'll take his shift. Just don't wake him." Tamasine looked at her face becoming hard and serious, something that surprised her sense the situation didn't exactly inspire it.

"Why?" he asked in a whisper eyes boring into hers.

"Why?" she repeated confused. He nod leaning in closer until they were an inch away. Isako's body screamed for her to move backwards, but she resisted even in her confusion not wanting Tamasine to know of her phobia to touch, it was bad enough she still held his wrist.

"Yes, why? Why all of this? Your father surely wouldn't approve of your friendship with Ama. So why bother? Surely you could just find someone else? Someone in your class." he pointed out, firing each question in quick succession after the other. Isako jerked back, releasing his wrist as if it would burn her. She didn't get very far, he grabbed her wrists in both his hands and brought her closer to peer into her eyes.

"Why would Arashi Atsushi's daughter care about someone her father doesn't approve of?" he whispered silkily eyes glowing and serious as death. Isako knew he could feel her frantic heart beat from were he held her wrists and wished her pulse would slow down.

"Because, I-I don't want to be like him." she gasped surprised. "And Ama's been the only one to ever accept me." She managed before shouting her mouth with a visible snap, surprised she'd told him so easily. Tamasine's shoulder slumped, and his grip on her wrists became very gentle. His eyes were pained and confused again. Just as Isako's were, she quickly, removed her wrists from his grip rubbing them absently as she examined the boy who looked as if he was being torn in two.

"Go to sleep Arashi." he told her in a dull voice. Isako opened her mouth to protest, but his eyes snapped into hers annoyed. "Just go I've been up for an hour and I know I'm not getting back to sleep. Genji needs his sleep." Isako nodded reluctantly going to her on sleeping bag. Her mind buzzed and she was certain she wasn't going to get any sleep that night, but almost the instant her head touched the pillow her muscles relaxed from overwork and she was out.

… … … … … …

When Isako woke the next morning the silence that had hung over them was still there only now it was pungent with a sense of pain and misery. When Isako realized that yet again neither Ama nor Asai were going to do anything about it, she became annoyed and decided she could at least make the day easier for the boy. Walking over to his side of camp where he was having trouble tying a knot, she felt Ama and Asai's startled stares boring into her back. Bending down next to the now cursing boy she gentle took the strings out of his hands. He jumped violently releasing them instantly.

Ignoring his stares she quickly untied the mess he'd made of the robes with her nimble fingers and quickly retied them. Leaning back to examine her work pleased, she ignored the heated stares she was getting form the other two and turned to look at Tamasine hesitantly waiting for him to get mad at her. The boy was so prideful. Instead he looked confused and the pain was there again. Isako felt the sick wave of guilt roll through her at the expression and realized too let she'd shown him it. Quickly jumping to her feet, she muttered an embarrassed apology, and shuffled away to her own things, only to be stopped by his unexpected words.

"Thank you." he breathed and jerked as if he hadn't expected those words to leave his mouth. Despite the shock that hit her like a sudden plunge in icy water, Isako felt a warm feeling begin in her heart and spread making her smile.

"Your welcome." she managed, before turning her back to fix her own things, thinking that maybe, just maybe, this trip wouldn't be so horrible. The little voice in the back of her head chided herself for being so happy at a simple thank you, claiming it didn't mean anything and he'd just done it because Asai was watching. Isako ignored that voice, suddenly not very tired. Her excitement soon vanished though when Asai told them they were going to have to enter the forest now.

Isako mentally groaned as the small smile quickly disappeared. The forest made her uneasy. True it provided much more protection than the desert, but it was so completely foreign it put her on edge. Everything from the scents, to the colors, to the sounds were startling her and made her long for the wide open sand. She felt claustrophobic with those trees towering over her at cutting off her view of the sky that now only showed in slits here and there. Ama, she noted, had absolutely no qualms with the alien landscape, in fact he looked practically giddy as he examined every new plant they came across. Isako was just falling into a depressed unease, feeling out of place at the relaxed way the others took in their new surroundings, when Tamasine appeared beside her. She stared at him. He looked a bit embarrassed casting a quick glance in the other two's direction before speaking in an almost silent whisper.

"I miss it too." he told her before, flashing over to his old position at the back. Isako gaped at him straining her neck back to stare. First a coat, then taking over, saying thank you, and now trying to make her feel better, what was wrong with Tamasine? Isako, despite her misgivings and the conflict she saw him struggling with in his eyes was quite pleased with this and smugly told the voice in her head. _Told you so._ That was when they heard the screams.

… … … … … …

Asai was the first to react gesturing for them to follow her silently as the screams grew louder. The Genin nodded, hearts racing, scared and excited at the prospect of their first battle. They flanked their teacher, silently, stopping a few yards away from the clearing the screams came from. Asai inclined her head a gesture for one of them to scoot ahead. She turned to look at Isako. The girl quickly took off, head reeling, foot falls silent. Her heart pounded to a painful rhythm as she settled in a nearby tree with a good view of the clearing. What she saw didn't make her feel in better.

In there was a little girl no older than eight and a young woman that appeared to be her sister, they were surrounded by bandits who were chuckling at the panic in their eyes and sobbing from the child. The older girl screeching curses at them swung the basket she had in wide arches to keep them at bay, as she held the child tightly to her side. A skinny man with a goatee screeched with laughter darting foreword and grabbing the scared child's arm causing the girl to give a startled yelp and release the older girl's skirt. The man chuckled distracted, not realizing the older one had zeroed in on him until she hit him in a particularly painful swing on the back of the head and kneed him in the groin. The man went down quickly, releasing the child with a startled yelp as her teeth dug into his hand. The girls backed away as one of his comrades quickly dragged him out of range. The bandits began to circle them again, more cautious now. The older girl looked at them with wild eyes panting heavily.

Isako felt her body shake as a feral snarl broke through her lips. The only thing that stopped her from launching herself at them right now was the need to tell Asai. She quickly ran back to them eyes blazing with fury. They looked up at her clearly surprised by her murderous expression, but theirs mirrored her when she told them what she saw. As soon as the last words were out of her mouth she turned and leapt back towards the clearing surprised to find someone right beside her. She turned to find Tamasine looking at her, he gave her a brief nod and she felt the understanding pass through them. Those bandits were dead.

They bandits had somehow separated the girls and the clearly panicked older one was swinging mercilessly, looking possessed as she tried to get to the struggling little one, who was putting up a pretty good fight, kicking, biting, scratching, and hitting every surface she could find. Isako looked at Tamasine and nodded. He shot out to help the little one, while she went towards the older girl. Closer now she could hear the lecherous words they were hissing at her and see the bright tears in the girls hazel eyes. They did not inspire mercy in her and she quickly took out one of the loudest jeerers, the skinny rat faced man who'd grabbed the younger girl with a quick kick to the throat.

Sputtering, the man went down not able to breath and in serious pain. Isako didn't pause as she quickly swung around hitting the startled man beside him in the gut, as he bent over Isako nailed him on the back of the head, side stepping to allow him to fall on his friend. She glared at the two white faced men left, who took one look at her eyes and paled further, now looking downright petrified. Ignoring this surprising action she took one step foreword.

"Let her go and I might let you live." she hissed softly glaring at the large man holding the girl that had to be at least seven feet. The man gave a shrill shriek of panic and all but threw the girl towards her, before turning to run along with his friend, who'd started as soon as her attention was distracted. Asai took them out with anger flashing in her teal eyes. Isako gave her a respectful nod and bent down to help the girl up, only to find the older girl staring up at her hazel eyes revealing the same terror the bandits had watched her with.

"Please," she whispered tears spilling as her voice shook. "Please don't kill us." Isako reeled back shocked. The girl seemed to mistake it for not shock at her words, but shock at being questioned. "I know it goes against your beliefs, but please my lady, don't kill us." The girl was on her hands and knees now, bowing down and sobbing. Isako quickly bent down touching her shoulder gently only to have her flinch away and stare up at her shaking.

"I'm not going to hurt you." the girl whispered gently, "I swear I'm not." The girl still didn't look convinced. "Would I have honestly gone through the trouble of saving you just to kill you?" she questioned. The girl shook her head, but it was more of her being too scared to argue than anything else. Isako sighed, confused at the behavior. "Come on I'll take you to your, eh," Isako glanced at the smaller girl who was clinging to Tamasine sobbing. "Sister?" The other girl nodded in confirmation.

She got to her feet shakily, sparring a few seconds to bow deeply to Isako, having ignored the offered hand of help, before running over to the young girl, who quickly ran into her arms, letting go of a panicked Tamasine. Isako looked at Tamasine wondering if he'd gotten the same reaction, but saw he didn't look surprised or shocked like she felt, but rather relieved the crying child was sobbing in her sister's arms instead of his. Isako felt a bit of ice settle in her stomach. What about her had inspired so much fear? The girl stiffened as Isako took her place beside Tamasine and the others who had finished tying up the bandits.

"Th-thank y-you, my l-lady," she stuttered out fearfully, clutching the child to her chest. The little girl took one look at Isako and quickly buried her head into her sister's chest whimpering quietly.

"Isako," she informed the girl, pessimistically. "My name's Isako. What is yours?" The girl nodded violently, making Isako wonder if she got back lash from the sudden movement.

"H-hai, Isako-sama, I am Akino and she is my l-little sister A-Ayaka." she quickly told her, stuttering a bit less with the others nearby. The older girl's eyes looked down and Isako's mind went blank. Sama? Her thoughts were interrupted though by Asai, who'd given the girls an incredulous look at the use of sama.

"Are you two from Yugakure?" the woman asked. Akino nodded, looking apprehensive. "Good, we'll escort you back, we're heading that way." This did not assure them as Asai had intended it too. Instead Ayaka gave a piercing cry and Akino started hyperventilating her face twisting in horror and pain.

"Oh god, oh god," she panted looking at Isako tears back. "Please don't, please!" Everyone looked at her surprised Ama placed a calming hand on her shoulder. She flinched away from it as she had Isako's, but paused when she saw his gentle green eyes.

"It's alright," he soothed in a calming voice. "We're here to protect you. Your village hired us to guard you from the bandits." The girl nodded numbly seeming to remember something, but glanced over at Isako with suspicion and fear.

"Even her." she squeaked, in a quiet voice, obviously thinking Isako couldn't hear. The girl felt as if she'd been slapped and instinctively pulled on the mask she wore around her father. She looked down trying not to hear Ama's startled assurances that Isako wouldn't hurt her or Ayaka. Isako, though she felt her heart tear slightly at these questions, acted as if she didn't hear them, opting to hang towards the back away from the girls when they began heading towards the village, leaving the bandits where they lay until they could send the village authorities to gather the incapacitated group.

She noticed, though she kept her violet gaze trained on the ground, that Tamasine kept throwing her almost worried looks at her silence. Ama spent his time similarly, torn between watching her worriedly and keeping the girls calm. What had she done? Isako wondered, a dull throb in her heart. What had she done to deserve to e treated like a monster? Nothing she knew. Nothing at all, but for some reason she was treated as such.

_Now you know how Gaara feels._ Her mind supplied, surprising her with the thought. Stopping she glanced at the sixteen year old girl in front of her's back. Yes, it was similar, but hadn't Gaara killed people to deserve his title as monster? People trying to kill him, she noted remembering her father's tales about the Kazekage's assassins. Before he was six they'd been accidents or he'd felt threatened. Isako thought back to the quiet red head he'd been when they were young and her father had taken her to the Kazekage's tower. He hadn't been particularly murderous, very lonely and confused, but he didn't radiate murderous intent and kill for pleasure like now. He hadn't become the terrifying individual she knew now until after his uncle had tried to kill him. Would he have been different if they hadn't treated him like a monster because he was a Jinchuriki? Isako shook her head, knowing it was too let even if it was true. But perhaps she could at least be a little nicer? Isako shrugged, it couldn't hurt as long as she didn't annoy him enough to make him want to bother with killing her. Isako's thoughts were quickly distracted though when the gates of the village loomed in front of them. Isako looked up feeling a gaze on her, it was Akino, and her eyes were wide with distrust, though not as fearful as before. _Well this will be an experience_, Isako thought pessimistically.


	4. Tamasine's Tale

**AN: For my reveiwers katarauchis653719 and IXLoveXMyXfishy, for reveiwing every chapter, and Shinningheart of the ThunderClan for making good guesses.**

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Isako was silent as she climbed the steps that lead from the forest to Yugakure, she could see the large arch that signaled the beginning of the village. She distracted herself with examining the landscape surrounding the village, realizing they'd need to know, so they could plan the best ways to protect it. It was a shinobi's nightmare. On a raised area of land it's only protection seeming to come from the forest that lead up the slope and shielded the back of the village. The wispy steam of the hot springs rose from the onesen. To the left and right in the distance were raised cliffs, perfect for archers to pick off panicking residents, not to mention the village itself was exuberantly decorated, lanterns and banners hung everywhere brightly welcoming the coming shinobi, crowded too, it seemed everyone had gathered to greet them. Isako almost winced as she closed her eyes tightly in distress. _What are they trying to make themselves look like easy pickings and attract them? _Isako sighed at her critical thoughts, feeling a bit guilty at her mental insults to people she hadn't even meet's intelligence. She was just annoyed, tired, and hurt from a long day in an unfamiliar environment. She'd feel more charitable after some alone time and a nice long sleep.

Isako slowed allowing the others to be greeted first. She watched a round woman with large brown eyes pull Akino and Ayaka into a bone crushing hug with a startled cry of relief. Isako hung back even more now, watching the woman's eyes darken as she was told the story by the girl. For some reason Isako felt that her appearance would burst the happy bubble of hope that clung to these people as the graciously welcomed the shinobi. So instead she stood there a few steps down not daring to go closer, pulling Tamasine's jacket closely around her and inhaling the now familiar scent, not cold at all. It wasn't until Ama turned and frowned troubled that she made her way up, looking firmly at the ground and attempting to hide her oddly colored gaze remembering it was what seemed to set Akino off.

"—nah, it wasn't me or Genji who saved them, it was Arashi!" Tamasine was informing the smiling villagers with a wide grin of his own, turning, grin still in place to find a very sedate Isako half hidden behind Asai and Ama. The boy scowled.

"Come on Arashi everyone wants to meet the hero." The boy told her. Isako shook her head, noticing Akino's quickly paling face out of the corner of her eye and the dark look who she assumed was her mother threw her.

"I'm sure everyone would much rather hear from you I didn't do much," Isako half lied casually, after all Tamasine and Asai _had_ taken out more than her. Tamasine snorted derisively a bit of his old self in the mocking expression.

"Yeah, but _you _saved the girls." Tamasine pointed out looking at her, eyes considerably warmer than ever, though still haunted with uncertainty. _Of all the times for the baka to get decent. _Her mind growled despairingly.

"Isako-sama doesn't have to." Akino said in a shaky voice, stumbling lightly over the words. Unease spread through the crowd, apparently Akino wasn't usually so nervous around strangers, if Isako was hearing their whispers correctly.

"Yes, _Isako-sama_," Akino's mother stated turning the title into an insult, and causing her daughter to flinch at the venom, stated coldly. This drew everyone's attentions to the girl. "Why don't you look at us Isako-sama?" the woman suggested innocently. Isako glared at the ground feeling indignant anger swell through her. How dare she play with her after she'd saved her girls?

"Of course I don't mind ma'am." Isako supplied respectfully, turning her vivid purple eyes on the woman herself. The middle aged woman actually yelped under the force of the gaze. Isako pulled up her mask and examined the rest of the village her anger growing with every second at the fear of the unknown spread through their eyes like wild fire. She heard the indistinct mutters and watched the warmth drain from the group only to be replaced by icy hostility. Isako suddenly felt guilty, because of the disdainful looks thrown towards the others. As if they were lowly for traveling with her.

"We will go to the rooms I rented now." Asai said stiffly. A small woman came forward trembling, jettisoned there way by a large man.

"I apologize, but all our rooms have been filled, Asai-san." she told her trembling, but firm. Asai jerked back as if slapped, anger burning fiercely in her eyes and her killing intent spreading through the crowd and making them whimper. Asai was nothing if not protective of her students.

"You can stay with me." a weak voice whispered. Isako looked up shocked to find the speaker being Akino. The same one who had been shaking like a leaf every time Isako looked at her? Yet, now she stood still trembling, still frightened, but still remembering common courtesy for the people who'd saved her. Isako suddenly felt a lot more respectful to the girl and a brief surge of distaste to the older woman who'd she assumed was her mother.

"Now Aki-chan—" she began reasonably, only to be stopped by a fierce look from those hazel eyes.

"I have plenty of room with only Aya-chan and myself, Auntie. I'd be honored to help them." She told her in a firm voice, keeping the fear buried in her eyes out of her voice and stubborn expression.

"Then at least let Aya-chan stay with me for the month." Her aunt argued, not even bothering to act welcoming towards them.

"No." Akino told her obstinately. The woman scowled her brown eyes equally fierce.

"Be reasonable—" the woman continued, but Akino brought herself together for one last barb.

"You be reasonable, these people have been perfectly politely and saved both mine and Ayaka's life. They _will_ stay with me and Aya-chan and that is final." Akino told her. These words were answered by a throaty cackle. Isako jumped startled to find an old woman hobbling towards them her eyes a faint indigo.

"Spoken like a true Head-woman." the crone complimented her vibrant eyes taking in the group of shinobi and lingering over Isako. Isako stiffened at that gaze, not because it was hate filled and suspicious, but because of the intensity and feeling of having herself dissected piece by piece with one glance. She was relieved when the woman looked away.

"Your mother would be proud." She finished ignoring the dark looks and signs to ward off evil made her direction. Akino seemed to gather strength from this and nodded a small smile on her face as she turned to look at the shinobi.

"Please follow Ayaka and I, we'll take you to our home so you can settle in." she told them politely in her soft voice, brushing passed her aunt, who throwing Isako another glare, disappeared. Isako sighed feeling guilty, though still angry, at the problems she'd caused the family, but followed the group obediently enough, walking beside the old woman, who hummed a song to herself, either not noticing or ignoring the somber atmosphere of those she walked with. Isako wondered about her. Why did she of all people not fear her? And why did the others fear her? Who was this woman? Isako went through the questions in her mind, head pounding and the traveling and lack of sleep catching back up to her now that the adrenaline was fading from her veins.

… … … … … …

It wasn't until late the next day that the anger finally completely left the exhausted girl, though it left its bitter taste on her tongue. It was just too much for someone to stay in a state of anger constantly. Isako wondered if that was why Tamasine had started treating her better. He still acted confused sometimes, but the cold feelings that radiated off the villagers and the way she handled it, in silence, seemed to fuel his temper and occasionally he'd look at her guiltily when one of them did something he himself had done before. Even Ama's temper was starting to wear thin after two straight days of nobody meeting their eyes and the hostile silence. Asai decided they needed to start training. The Genin were relieved for the distraction and followed their teacher eagerly from Akino's home after breakfast.

Akino's behavior was slowly starting to improve, she was obviously still spooked whenever Isako look her directly in the eye, but as long as they avoided eye contact that girl seemed comfortable enough. Ayaka had gotten her fear quite quickly seeing her sister's actions and had taken to sitting next to Isako and starring at her while she told her about their family. Their parents were descended from the village's equivalent of a Kage and so they were the unofficial leaders. After their parents had died, Akino had been expected to step in, but the girl hadn't thought she'd been leader material so she'd forfeited the title to her father's best friend. Her aunt had never approved f the decision and had been even more disapproving when she'd started hanging around Isano-baa-sama, as the girls called her, who seemed to be as feared if not more so than Isako's violet eyed gaze.

The old woman simply ignored their behavior and spent time with the girls acting as their surrogate grandmother. It was her doing that Ayaka had started referring to Isako by her name, or at least the Isako-sama, her sister insisted on continuing. Isako was curious about the old woman, but also was as fearful of her eyes as the villagers were of her own. She was the type who could have you spilling your biggest secrets and always seemed to know what you were thinking. Isako didn't like that. She had too many of her own secrets to keep to be completely trustful around the intense old woman.

Isako sighed as they walked through the woods. She could tell that an onsen was nearby if the acrid scent that stung her nose was any indication. Sure enough they come upon a pool of heated water surrounded by the smooth rocks quickly. Tamasine and Ama looked at Asai perplexed, but Isako could guess what they were doing. She sighed at the easy task before her, but straightened deciding it was better than nothing.

"Okay, my lovies, and yes Tama the names are necessary no matter how much you despise them," Asai stated giving Tamasine a pointed look at the exasperated expression on his face. "It has finally come for us to get to know each other better and get some training done. Isako climb that tree." She ordered pointing to one of the trees that bordered the rocky area. Isako rolled her eyes at her sensei's seemingly randomness, but obediently walked over, barely pausing to focus chakra in her feet, before steadily walking up the tree, much to her teammates' surprise. Isako settled herself on a branch to find Asai frowning in disappointment. Clearly Asai had been hoping to get some amusement out of the exercise. Isako couldn't resist grinning down cheekily at her. Her father had insisted on his children learning such basic chakra control exercises, despite their actual difficulty, years ago.

"Alright show-off lets see you walk on water than." Asai grumbled that insane glint already back in her eye. Isako did easily. Water had been much simpler to master, it was constantly changing and moving on your feet lie the desert and all the Genin knew how to us chakra to steady themselves if the desert was being particularly unruly. Asai was practically growling at her casual manner looking at the water accusingly as if it had suddenly betrayed her.

"Right, get out here and help those two do the same thing since you are _so_ advance." Asai grumbled at her general direction before moving over to a large rock where she could have a good view at what she would consider _entertainment_. Isako fought the urge to roll her eyes and turned to her two teammates who were looking at her startled.

"Alright, most would tell you this is a relatively simple technique to master. If they do than they're liars." Isako told them in a pleasant voice. Tamasine raised a skeptical eye brow. "First you have to focus your chakra into your feet, like so," I lifted my fought focusing to make sure they shone blue with the thin coating of chakra. "Conveniently enough the feet happen to be hardest part of the body to focus chakra in. you have to be very careful though, to much and you damage the tree, too little and you fall off. You willprobably not get it on your first try unless your chakra control is already excellent. The point of the exercise is to train your chakra until the point this will come naturally to you and when ever you use jutsu you will not be wasting your energy by using excess. After you've gotten to the top of the tree, we will start on walking on water. Mark your spots with your kunai. Any questions?" Isako finished. Tamasine's eyebrows were practically in his hair line and Ama looked down at his feet half doubtful half curious.

"It helps to do it running." Isako offered as the boys chose their trees carefully, kunai clenched in their hands. Ama nodded, eyeing the tree apologetically and Tamasine didn't respond focused entirely on the exercise. "Begin." Neither got very far, Ama had surprisingly enough broken the tree bark for using too much and Tamasine's was too erratic to hold long leaving deep gouging scars in his. Both boys scowled, but Isako was impressed. They'd down much better than Nori and herself when they'd begun, true they been ten and eight, respectively, at the time, but still they'd gotten further than they had and both girls had an advantage over the boys.

Isako stepped forward to explain how they could approve. Both boys listened quiet as she made it as simple and easy as she could. Their next try was better, though the problems were the same. Isako made them repeat the exercise two more times to allow herself t get a better comprehension of their problems. Nodding to herself she called the boys over. Tamasine was scowling as he looked at his shallow marks and badly shredded tree.

"Ama you're still using too much chakra, if you keep this up you'll completely eradicate the thing." Isako told him gently, not really scolding, but eyeing his bombarded and scared tree warily. Ama's cheeks painted themselves with pink causing Isako to feel a bit guilty. She quickly assured herself that she was helping him not picking on him and turned to Tamasine who was glaring at the ground as the toe of his shoes kicked at a few pebbles. "Tamasine-san, you're even worse. You keep focusing the right amount, but you get impatient and the chakra becomes unstable causing those gashes." Tamasine was silent, but his glaring intensified and his ears were suspiciously pink from what she could see of them in his mope of dark brown. Isako frowned at their reactions feeling a bit angry at Asai for making her teach them instead of her. She was just a Genin for pity sakes! She wasn't good enough to teach her teammates. Isako's eyes scanned the area to find it suspiciously Asai free. Great now she'd been abandoned.

"Okay, you know how we have to walk across the desert?" The boys looked up surprised and nodded. "Do you know how we keep our balance and don't slip on the soft dirt." They shook their heads suddenly looking more curious than upset. She knew they hadn't made the connection, nobody seemed to, it was a trait so breed into them that even civilians, with their menial chakra levels, who'd lived in Suna, adapted to it naturally. "Chakra. We focus chakra in our feet to keep them there. We've been doing it since we were little and didn't even know what chakra was. We're the only people who can do it from babyhood and everyone does it, even civilians. It takes so little that we don't even realize we're doing it. The only difference is now you're trying to force the action. You have to stay calm and do what's natural think of the desert and how you feel when you step into the sinking sand right off the stone, there's a slight moment as your chakra balances you, try and make that moment happen now and walk up the tree." Isako smiled at their faces. Ama looked at his tree intently as Tamasine turned to his a smirk gracing his lips. Isako knew she didn't have to worry about them. They could do it.

… … … … … …

They were panting, chakra supplies exhausted when the first signs of night touched the skies. Isako looked at their worked please. By non tomorrow they'd be at the top and be moving on to water walking. Tamasine collapsed gasping beside her, normally it would have shocked her, but she was starting to get used to his odd behavior. The boy kept his eyes closed from where he laid on his back, attempting to catch his breath. Ama took her other side panting, too, and eyeing his tree with great pride. The blasts had completely disappeared after the sand explanation. His green eyes looked up at her gratefully, before he closed them leaning his face against the cold stone. Tamasine though, opened his eyes and rolled over on his stomach, pushing himself up by his elbows and looking up at her brown eyes curious.

"Hey Arashi," he began voice pleasant, but breathless. Isako looked down at him, feeling the sinking sun burning into her back. She'd been enjoying the heat the onsen provided, having taken off Tamasine's jacket long ago.

"Hai?" asked Isako curious. Ama didn't open his eyes, but Isako felt his attention shift to the boy addressing her, brown eyes pleasantly friendly.

"How come you already know this stuff?" he questioned hand waving slightly in the trees direction. "Asai was surprised, so, it can't exactly be normal." Isako sighed on the inside looking up at the purple sky. True it wasn't that common for Genin to already know it, but Clan heirs were expected to have mastered it by the time they'd graduated. Asai though seemed to have thought the same principles didn't apply to her, or she'd just never realized.

"My father taught me years ago." Isako told him mildly a light catching her attention as she spotted the first fire fly. The atmosphere went tense at the innocent statement and Tamasine froze his entire body taut. Ama's eyes snapped open, flickering over to Tamasine with an odd sort of horror. Isako looked down at the boy, knowing she'd said something that obviously upset him, but not understanding why the mention f her father would.

Tamasine looked in pain, his face twisting unpleasantly, and his fingers biting into his palms. He wouldn't look at Isako or Ama, looking almost disgusted with himself. His eyes tried to meet hers, but quickly flickered away from her concerned gaze. Finally he closed his eyes and after taking a shaky breath sat up, pulling his legs to his chest wrapping his arms around them and turning to look at her.

"You probably want to know why I treated you the way I did, right?" Isako paused a bit uncertain, but the resolve in his eyes made her nod. "And why I'm suddenly acting different?" Another nod. Isako watched him sigh sadly, before he looked pointedly at a wary Ama.

"The change is mainly Genji's fault," he told her grudgingly, glaring at Ama accusingly. Ama met his gaze stubbornly. Tamasine shook his head turning to catch Isako's purple eyed gaze with his chocolate one. "Only partially though, I'd started to double guess myself after you fought me, but when you hit me," he rubbed his cheek sheepishly as if the mark still hurt. "I got a little angry. It hurt my pride to get taken down y a girl less than half my size. I let it blind me to who you were. But after a while it started to fade and well I found myself thinking you weren't half bad, but then I'd remember…" his voice trailed off and his grip on his knees tightened. "I'd remember what your father did and hate you all the more for making me doubt myself. Ama finally broke me the day before we left. He'd come to tell me about the missions, but as soon as he realized we were alone he really dug into me. Getting onto me for treating you bad and saying if I insisted on being a prejudice bigot that I didn't deserve to be a shinobi and that I should quit, well actually that was what _Asai_ said later, but it's also the gist of Ama's much more polite version."

"After he'd gotten that out of his system," he shot the blushing blonde an amused look. "We got to talking and he told me about you, and how you volunteered at the hospital and broke your Dad's rules and stuff." Tamasine seemed impressed, but Isako felt like she'd been slapped, eyeing the blonde with hurt. Ama looked at her apologetically. Tamasine caught the exchange. "Oh don't blame him, considering how stubborn I am, if he hadn't told that I probably would have been a demon our entire trip. Bt then, h-e told me about your shoulder…" Tamasine looked at her eyes haunted with the memory of horror. Isako felt even more betrayed by that. True she'd never told Ama rather his suspicions were correct, but for him to share it with Tamasine. It made her feel naked and vulnerable, but not in the relieved way she had with Ama. Isako looked away shame coloring her face at the pity in his eyes. Her heart hurt, but she kept listening.

"It made me realize we weren't that different after all. I blamed you for what your father did. It was like if I hurt you I was hurting him after all he did to me and my family!" Tamasine continued hurriedly, voice shaking with pain and relief. His voice became soft and gentle as if he said it quietly it wouldn't hurt as much.

"You were just like him when I saw you the day our teams were assigned. The ice in your eyes was just like his wh-when he did it. It was terrifying to hear someone sound _just like him_! I hated you for it! For reminding me of **that man**! And then when we met the next day you were so different. All quiet and uncertain, l-like—"

"A mask," Isako breathed her heart clenching horribly. Tamasine nodded, face horrified.

"Yeah, just like him, _Arashi Atsushi_," Tamasine snarled the name in disgust. "He acts so innocent, so pleasant and kind, but then when you get on his bad side he shows his real self! And then if you say something against him _you're _the one who looks bad. Him being an upstanding citizen and all." Tamasine leaned his head against his knees, his angry energy fading as his shoulders lumped foreword in defeat.

"To think of having someone like him, _just like him_, was enough to make me want to retch. So I kept pestering you I wanted to make your mask to slip to show you weren't so damn lily-pure, but then it didn't. I kept waiting and waiting, but it never happened. Then during the trip you were the same even when we were all alone. I-I, felt horrible, I was wrong and had treated you badly, but part of me still believed it. When you saved the girls I knew I was wrong and I decided I'd make it up to you. I wanted to rip out their throats for treating you like that." He snarled the last bit quietly. "Just like me, I'd done just that and it was all so stupid. That man hurt you, and here I was blaming you for being born from him, when the whole reason he'd done it was…because of how we were born." Isako nodded to herself understanding, through her numb mind, it made since. It all made since. She looked down at Tamasine's curled up form and found him oddly breakable despite his bulk. She almost didn't dare, but she had to know. Had to know how horrible it really was.

"What did he do?" she questioned weakly.

"He killed my parents." Tamasine whispered voice barely audible, he sounded as if he was crying. Isako gave a sound half way between a whimper and gasp, before allowing her face to fall in her hands.

"Oh god, oh god," she whispered to herself over and over. Her father, her father had been responsible for Tamasine's parents' deaths. And Nori had insulted them, her mind sobbed at her, through the numb horror. Isako flinched as a jolt went through her. She finally remembered where she'd heard the name Daishi from.

… … … … … …

_The eleven year old paused outside her father's door hearing voices inside. One was as familiar as her own, her father's, but the others was strange and upset. Isako leaned back on her heels biting her lip uncertainly. Her father would be very angry if she interrupted him, especially when he was in one of his meeting. But she had been summoned by him. Perhaps she could stay until the second voice faded and then enter. That idea wasn't very pleasant either, she didn't want to see her father if he thought she was spying on him. Resigned to tempt fate by interrupting the girl raised her fist to knock only to freeze in place at the barely comprehend able words._

"_They know too much," the unfamiliar voice told her father urgently._

"_The Daishis know their place and if they are foolish enough to betray my trust, they will be taken care of swiftly. Now be gone, you distasteful worm." A cold voice ordered bored._

"_But Arashi-sama—" the other voice proteseted again._

"_I said go, my daughter is waiting outside the door and I need to teach her a lesson about what happens to eavesdroppers in my house." Isako cringed, lip trembling slightly, but knew there was no escape. In her life her fathers word was law rather she liked it are not. She heard some shuffling as the man left and her father called for her to enter. She pushed open the door pulling on her mask quickly as she took in his lazy body language and shinning eyes, he was most dangerous right now._

"_Now, it seems you need a lesson in manners," he'd begun as she buried her emotions one by one, cutting herself off completely from the situation._

… … … … … …

"I-I-I…" she began before trailing off pathetically. He looked up at her, solemnly.

"You have nothing to apologize for." He told her softly. Isako felt the tears prick her eyes, but said nothing. Tamasine hadn't cried, his tears were gone, like hers were. They both looked up at Ama who was crying quietly, crying for both of them because they couldn't. Crying for his friends. Tamasine gave him a comforting smile, ruffling his hair, eyes sad.

"Come on stop with the mushy stuff, Ama," Tamasine ordered playfully, pointedly not using his family name. Ama nodded returning a watery smile, before turning to Isako guiltily.

"You did what was best." She assured him gently. "We need to go, Asai will get worried." The boys nodded their consent and stood all three feeling their stiff muscles from sitting for so long. None of them spoke on the way back, but they all felt it. They were together now.


	5. Terror of the Grass

**AN: Here cheek out this video my friend made for it!**

**http: // www. youtube. com/ watch?v=L 1Yz64Ci_ hI (Take out the spaces)**

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"Is it true you wish to be a medic Isako-sama?" Akino asked a few days later. Isako started in surprise, almost knocking over her bowl of rice. Only her quick reflexes saved Akino's meticulously made meal. Flushing slightly Isako turned to look at the older girl ignoring little Ayaka's giggling and Tamasine snorting into his tea. It was true that Akino had gotten used to her, but the girl still didn't speak very much to begin with, if Ayaka was to be believed. She was especially shy of Isako these days.

"Yes I do Akino-san. Why is it that you ask?" inquired Isako politely, absentmindedly licking off the rice from her fingers. No sense in wasting food after all. Ayaka giggled again at the action. Isako felt a smile quirk on her lips feeling warmth in her heart at the child's relaxed nature.

"Oh, Ama-kun was telling me about it earlier, when he helped out in the kitchen." Akino explained casually, delicately drawing out a bite of her own rice. "I only mentioned it because Isano-baa-sama was a medic when Yugakure was still a shinobi village. I'm sure she would gladly teach you some if you're really interested."

"Oh," Isako said weakly, trying to think of a polite way to say she'd rather not. Then again was it really right for her to avoid the old woman because she was different? Isako felt a flash of hot guilt realizing that she was treating Isano like the villagers treated her and her own village treated Gaara, though not as extreme. She couldn't help, but think of him more and more the past while and feel empathy towards him for his short tragic life. Her mind made up she looked back up at the expectant girl, giving her a weak smile. "Sure, if Asai can spare me from training." Asai glanced up from her second bowl, clearly not having heard a word of the conversation.

"What?" she questioned, teal eyes blinking sleepily. Ayaka giggled at the Jonin's slurred speech, but the others used to such behavior simply shared an amused glance.

"Isako-sama was wondering if you could excuse her from training, Asai-san." Akino explained, softly. Asai raised an eyebrow turning to look at Isako surprised.

"What has teaching these two finally become too much for you?" Isako felt her lips twitch at the slightly insulted huff from Tamasine's direction.

"Not quite, Akino-san just told me the Isano-baa-sama, was or rather is a medic with training from when Yugakure was a Hidden Village." Isako replied smoothly. Asai didn't look all that surprised, which of course meant she'd suspected something or already knew about the retired shinobi of the town.

"Come on, Ama and me'll just be doing patrols today," Tamasine urged. "We can spare Isako." Isako felt her lips curve in a smile that happened every time Tamasine referred to her by her name instead of Arashi. Asai had been ecstatic that her Genin were finally getting along and she probably would have given them the whole country if they'd been so inclined just to keep them from going back to what they were.

"Fine if Purple-eyes must," Asai agreed with a dramatic put upon sigh. Isako relaxed the smile remaining on her face, another thing that had changed. She had begun smiling a lot nowadays. And the villagers shunning didn't seem to matter as much, now that she had, _two_ close friends. They finished breakfast quietly.

… … … … … …

Isako wasn't sure what about the old woman perturbed her so, but if she had to explain it, it all stemmed from those blue eyes of hers, ironically enough. There was nothing truly peculiar about the color, in fact they were quite pretty a dark deep blue that lightened to a pale, almost grey color along the edges. No, it was the intensity of her gaze and the way, as Isako had thought before, she seemed to be able to read your mind. Because of this Isako found herself walking a bit slower than necessary down the path that led to Isano's house.

When she'd left to speak to the old woman, she'd not been surprised to discovery she lived a little outside of Yugakure or the way the villagers made a discreet, or attempted to be discreet anyway, sign against evil. In truth the entire attitude was so tiring that Isako found their fear of the different just plain sad. Her bitter taste remained, but it was quickly fading into a distant sadness mixed in with pity. Isako also noted, to her chagrin, that a group of boys, from ages fourteen to sixteen, were trying to follow her around without being seen. Judging from the admiring looks the girls their age threw them they'd obviously volunteered to _keep an eye on her_. Which she found both amusing and pathetic. They weren't much of a threat, but one of the sixteen year olds unnerved her. He had dark brown, almost black hair and startling green eyes that were intelligent and calculative. Those eyes made him stand out as a possible threat in her mind and she decided to ask Akino about him later.

"Well, if it isn't the purple eyed Isako-sama." A familiar voice croaked with amusement, chuckling as a startled Isako jumped. Isako spun around to find a smirking Isano standing in the path behind her. She blushed embarrassed that she'd been caught off guard so easily. Isano's eyes crinkled into laugh wrinkles. "Don't be so surprised or feel to bad child, you've got to get up pretty early to surprise Isano of the Hot Spring."

"Hai, Isano-sama," Isako replied unable to stop the familiar habit of looking directly away from her eyes. The old woman chuckled at the gesture making the girl flush even worse.

"Come now child, it wouldn't be right for me to not invite you in," the woman told her eyes teasing. Isako nodded weakly trailing behind her nervously into the small cottage. Isako quickly removed her shoes, noting with surprise that Isano already had two cups laid out and a warm pot of tea.

"Oh, I'm sorry, you're expecting company. I can leave if you want." Isako offered, unable to get the blush to fade from her warm cheeks. Isano turned to her and cracked a smile.

"Why yes, I am expecting company and now that she's arrived it'd be a shame if she left," the woman teased before giving another cackle at Isako's shell-shocked expression. "Sit, sit, girl and we can discuss what you've come for." Isako sat numbly quickly accepting a cup of tea and taking a drink, not tasting it as she did. So the woman had expected her and knew she'd come for something. Isako inwardly sighed at those searching, amused old eyes. Isako hated getting flustered, but her guilt from being a bit scared of this woman's eyes and her nervousness that she, Isako might finally learn to be a true medic had broken through her shields as soon as she saw the woman. Isako stilled her shaky fingers and took a deep breath followed by a drink as she calmed herself, trying to be like the placid weather outside. In a few minutes she was calm again and Isano was watching her probingly with an amused smirk.

"Settled are you, well come now, what is it you want. Considering you're earlier reactions I highly doubt this is a social visit." Isano pointed out drinking her own tea serenely. Isako sat down her cup and straightened, forcing herself with a physical effort to meet the woman's gaze.

"Akino-san told me that you are a medic." Isako told her simply. Isano nodded, seeming to understand and sighed, fingering something that hung around her neck. It was a pair of silver rosary beads with a thin silver circle with a thin triangle in the middle of the circle hanging from it. Isano examined her all traces of humor gone. Isako straightened self-consciously, but met her gaze head on.

"I assume Akino-chan never explained, why the villagers treat me the way they do." Isako shook her head, hair standing up on the back of her neck. Isano looked down giving a dark chuckle laced with bitterness. "That sweet girl, forgiving an old bag of bones like me." Her voice was tinted with sadness and great regret. Isako felt a bit of sympathy stir in her for this defeated looking old woman.

"Isano-sama?" she whispered concerned. The old woman's head shot up, weakness gone, her eyes suddenly fierce and her jaw set.

"Alright, before you start asking me to be anyone's sensei you've got to know the story, alright?" Isako nodded and she continued with a sigh. "During the Second Great Shinobi World War our small village was devastated much like other smaller countries like Amegakure, but unlike Amegakure our village leaders decided to do something about it. Right after the war ended we created a neutrality agreement and rumors circulated that we were going to cease to be a Hidden Village entirely. One among was a skilled young shinobi, he was unhappy with this, but kept silent until the day our leaders made it official, we were no longer to practice the Ninja arts. The young man was disgusted by this and slaughtered many of our neighbors. After which he left our village to become a missing-nin. Many blamed me for the slaughter, though I saved as many as I could."

"Why?" Isako questioned quietly, sensing the woman's dark mood.

"Because I knew something was off about this person. I knew he'd been leaning towards the violent teachings of Jashin, but I said nothing. Do not ask me why child, for I shan't say, but I kept silent and my silence condemned me. I was a young woman then and lost the only family I had left, my younger brother. I wear this rosary as a symbol of my sin, for this a Jashinist symbol. The shinobi of the time understood and knew I wore this, not as a symbol of my beliefs, but as the symbol of my duty to protect my village in atonement. Their children misunderstood and blamed me for the fate that left many orphaned and now the grandchildren hold these beliefs. But do not pity me child, for I killed them as surely as he did." Isano finished and intense look in her eyes, before she turned back to her tea giving Isako a moment to absorb it.

Why would she stay silent when her village was in danger? If it meant so much to her now, then why? Isako frowned realizing something odd. She'd never said his name. Why? Isako knew there were layers of this story that needed to be told before she could fully understand it. Also it made her think of some of the mutters she'd heard when she'd first entered. She was sure she'd heard someone, or several someones say the word 'Jashinist'.

"Is…is this man connected to the way the villagers treat me?" Isako asked slowly, looking up at Isano warily. Surprise flickered through the old woman's eyes and she chuckled.

"Well, you're intelligent at least." Isano admitted pouring a new cup and looking at her thoughtfully. "You're correct. That man had purple eyes, though they were different from yours child. Your color is much more flattering." Isano teased, eyes becoming serious quickly. "The villagers and people of this region have learned to fear those with purple eyes as those of Kiri fear their own Kekkei Genkai users." Isano chuckled again, to Isako's confusion. The old woman gave a gentle smile. "Ironically, it's those very eyes they fear so much that seems to keep the bandits away." Isako remained silent a few moments before giving a weak chuckle. Isano finished off her tea and stood patting off her kimono and turning to leave the room. She paused at the door and frowned at Isako frozen form.

"Well, child do you want to learn or not?" she demanded harshly, but her eyes were gentle. Isako smiled widely jumping to her feet and following the woman eagerly.

… … … … … …

The days that followed were both the hardest and best Isako could ever say she'd experienced. True Isano was strict about even the slightest mistakes and her punishments were fierce, but Isako was learning and that was all that mattered. At first she'd been forced to read scroll after scroll and to do basic techniques so Isano could test her chakra control, but soon she was moving on to learning actual techniques and training. Isano included Taijutsu and Genjutsu training along with her Medic-Ninjutsu and by the end of everyday Isako came back exhausted and slept like a log every night, not to mention she had to eat even more than Asai to keep up her energy. Eventually Asai had gotten tired of her students constant exhaustion and had decreed that every two days she would take a break to work on team work and patrol with the others. Isako had noticed that, though Asai hid it, she was becoming wary about the lack of activity and had begun increasing patrols and training harder.

The only good thing that came out of those secessions was learning more about her teammates. Tamasine seemed to specialize in Taijutsu and was very good at dissecting his opponents' weakness for a take down. Ama had developed his own Ninjutsu style that turned his plants into deadly weapons, but he seemed to prefer quick finishes with minimal damage to the opponent and mostly used his extensive Genjutsu arsenal. Isako knew her own powers, she was fast and quick, and had her Medical Ninjutsu and new knowledge of the human body to her advantage. Tamasine was in a huff about her continually beating him, though she worked for each and every one of those and had some pretty good bruises at the end. There was no way she was going to let him beat her, friend or not. She wouldn't even dare to spar with Ama until her resistance to Genjutsu got better.

Isako examined the clearing in front of her lazily through the almost closed eyelashes. Her body relaxed, making her look like she was dozing in the sun, but in truth every sense was alive and wired. Tamasine had said something odd was going on in this area so they'd come up with a plan. Isako unfortunately had been assigned the role of helpless little girl caught unaware. As much as she hated playing the defenseless part, she'd been defenseless too many times for real, she'd agreed knowing she was the one best able to escape if something went wrong. So now she lay there leaning against a tree waiting, in an old kimono of Akino's her hair pulled away from her face in a bun, some left on each side to frame her face and bangs left hanging. Isako resisted the urge to shift uncomfortably as the bark dug into her back, keeping her breath slow and even.

She felt her nose twitch as barely sparking chakra signatures, those of civilians, appeared nearby moving towards her. Well here goes nothing, her mind supplied as she relaxed out some of her tension, body hanging loosely over tree root it was sprawled over. The footsteps were easily heard as they approached, civilians trying to be quiet sounded like stampeding bulls to a ninja. She heard one of them creep towards her and bend down his rank breath filling her sensitive nose. _Oh my,_ she thought startled feeling the nausea grip her stomach. Isako turned away from the scent innocently as if having a fitful dream. Rancid Breath chuckled greasily.

"This one's pretty, isn't she?" Rancid Breathe pointed out. She heard the grunts of agreement pass through the men. She silently vowed to kill Tamasine for his plan later on or better yet make him be the _defenseless_ maiden who had to listen to these pigs' vulgar whispers.

"Do you think we should take her with us?" one with a slimy voice questioned. Isako listened to their mutterings, mind occupied with wondering what was taking Ama and Tamasine so long. They couldn't have been caught these bandits were too- Isako stiffened, thankfully they didn't notice. She mentally cursed her jumpiness feeling Ama's plant brush the underside of her hand in a signal that told her they were coming. Isako almost sighed with relief, but the touch of a calloused hand on her cheek, quickly changed her mood. Damn it, she cursed. She still couldn't move, not before they got in position. The hand moved across her cheekbones, thumb rubbing against her lips before drifting down her neck. Isako felt nauseous and a little violated as it drifted further down. The grass twitch under her.

Isako's eye popped open and the startled bandit, Rancid Breathe, judging by his smell, only had time for the surprise to flicker through him, before she swiftly stabbed his pressure point. She'd used unnecessary force of course, and he'd wake up with a headache and in pain, but considering what he'd said earlier he deserved it. Isako was just as merciless with the others, feeling no pity towards them. After she finished, and they were lying at her feet, either unconscious or whimpering in pain, she looked up to see Tamasine begin tying them up.

"It worked," he offered in an effort to placate her.

"Never again." She told him, voice steely. He opened his mouth, but stopped when he saw her slightly mussed kimono.

"What happened?" he hissed dangerously, catching Ama's attention. Isako looked away feeling startled green eyes flash over her.

"One of them got a little handsy. If I really was a village girl it would have been much worse." She informed them, head jerking up at the killing intent that began to waft off the two boys. She instinctively stepped between them catching sight of Tamasine's taut dangerous expression.

"I'll kill them," he growled softly, eyeing them with downright demonic eyes. Isako shivered at the soft words, knowing he meant them and would do it if given the chance.

"Stop," she told him gently, making his furious glare meet her own pleading gaze. "Don't let your first kill be over me. Please." She pleaded causing him to waver slightly. He threw the bandits a disgusted look, but nodded.

"They're cowards," he told her, "Filthy, useless, cowards." Isako reached out and gently touched Tamasine's shoulder. Her insides trembled as she did, surprised by her own daring and meeting Ama's startled gaze as she did. Isako felt the warmth of his body dimly through the material, and jumped slightly as his gloved hand laid itself on her own. She was touching someone. She realized startled. A shiver went down her spine at the warmth and pleasant closeness. Her fingers relaxed in the grip, gently entwining with Tamasine's. _Touch,_ she thought to herself mind buzzing with the newness of it. _It was pleasant._ When had they last time she'd willingly touched someone been? She thought back realizing she couldn't even remember. She'd been self-sufficient since she was old enough to walk, never being coddled or petted like a child should have been. In fact the only time she could remember her father touching her in a nonviolent manner, was when she'd been seven and held her own against him in a spar without being too horribly injured. He'd brushed her hair lightly, but by then she'd been so adverse to the act of touch she'd flinched away to his amusement.

Tamasine not realizing how serious the brief contact was, released her hand quickly, and gave her a nod, before walking off to alert Asai of their success and gather the villagers in charge of bringing the captured bandits to the jail in town. Isako stared down at her tingling hand it felt oddly cool in the air. She hadn't realized Ama had moved, until he very slowly wrapped his own hand in hers, eyes peering into Isako's making sure she was alright with it. She gave a barely perceivable nod and Ama smiled taking both her hands in his own and bringing them over his heart. Isako cocked her head to the side wondering about the gesture. Embarrassment flushed through her as she realized she didn't really know how to touch people, or what things like that meant. Sure she knew that couples held hands, hugged and kissed, but mothers held their children's hands and hugged them, giving them kisses on the cheeks and stuff. What was appropriate for friends and what wasn't?

Isako took a hesitant step foreword as Ama lowered the hands allowing them to swing in front of the two of them, his smile was very wide. Isako released herself from his grip, causing him to look at her curiously as she brought her hands up to look down at them inquisitively, almost as if she couldn't believed she'd just down it. Her eyes flickered up to Ama's and she reached out laying them on his shoulders. His eyes flickered with surprise, but he stayed perfectly still. Isako was thankful for the understanding, taking a step closer and wrapping her arms around his neck before leaning in and resting her head on his shoulder.

"This is a hug, correct?" she questioned uncertainly. Ama chuckled, but he sounded sad. Isako stiffened slightly as he slowly lowered his own arms onto her shoulder blades. He went perfectly still again, barely moving as he breathed in and out allowing her to get used to the contact. Isako felt her body relax enjoying the loose embrace. She closed her eyes leaning into it as he tightened his grip.

"So what do you think of it, up to your standards?" Ama asked quietly teasing lightly.

"It's fine," Isako admitted quietly. "This is my first, so I don't have any standards." She admitted shyly. Ama chuckled lightly.

"What, the first time you hugged a boy?" he teased, voice sounding a bit less tight and emotional.

"No," she admitted blushing a little sounding as if she was confessing a horrible sin. "My first hug." Ama stiffened, all laughter gone as his arms tightened protectively.

"I see," he deadpanned, clearly hiding just how upset he was. Isako felt a rush of shame. How could she upset Ama like that?

"Sorry," she whispered into his shoulder, pulling away slightly, only to be dragged back.

"Nothing to be sorry for," he told her kindly, giving her a squeeze before releasing her. He peered down at her intently. "What brought this on all of the sudden?" Isako shrugged slightly, not wanting to admit something so personal, though truthfully the conversation itself had been pretty personal. She'd just wanted to feel what it was like. To have someone actually want to touch you.

"Well, well, two little shinobi all alone." A voice whispered silkily. Isako and Ama stiffened, eyes widening. They hadn't heard anything, sensed anything. Isako spun around on her heel to find a man leaning casually against the tree watching them with amusement. His green eyes flickered and she felt her own widen in surprise. It was the boy from the village, but older, now he looked to be in his mid-twenties.

"Recognize me little kunoichi," he purred, voice dark and smooth. Isako froze, realizing there was something horribly off about this man. It wasn't just his eyes, or his changed appearance, but the pure power that suddenly released from him leaking across the clearing and locking both of them in place. An elite ninja, her numb mind told her as she shook, unable to tell if it was Ama shaking her with trembling or if she herself was doing it to. He completely hid his life force, he felt dead to her, the area were the wind should touch him was the same as a rock, nothing like the warm pulsing energy of a human being. He was unnatural and didn't belong here, like her father didn't belong in the desert. But instead of being cloaked in ice he was cloaked in ash and decay. Isako felt her heart speed up and her breath turn gasping as he leaned foreword walking towards them in the balanced gait of a predator. Ama's hand tightened around her wrist as he flung her to the ground.

Isako gasped feeling a fierce wind and two familiar chakras enter the clearing. Ama shook above her, but kept a firm grip around the still frozen girl's waist dragging her over beside Tamasine. Asai looked fierce her energy as powerful as the man's, but with the comforting flavor of life and desert. Isako felt her muscles loosen as she went limp against Ama looking at the man fearfully. They almost died, she realized horrified. They'd be dead if Asai hadn't arrived shocking them with her flash of chakra. They'd be dead because they froze in the face of an opponent.

"You guys go," she ordered fiercely. Isako turned to stare at her back watching as she drew to kunai never glancing at her students as she focused on the man. He cocked his head to the said a mocking smile pulling on his lips as his green eyes settled on Asai.

"Asai Kimi, the Sand's Number One Kunoichi." He drawled out in greeting, giving her a respectful nod. Asai gave him a feral smile that looked more like a dog bearing its teeth.

"Sasame Haruki, Missing-nin of Kusagakure, Terror of the Grass." Asai returned her voice hostile, she snarled, and Isako felt her attention focus on them.

"I told you three to leave!" she growled, causing Haruki to raise an eyebrow.

"Tsk, tsk, insubordination," he chided, eyes gleaming. "Allow me to do you a favor and take care of your Genin." He flickered out of sight.

"No!" Asai shouted flickering towards the blur. Isako gasped realizing that her sensei was too slow she could feel the unnatural blur coming for Tamasine. She broke through Ama's grasp leaping in front of the boy.

"So you want to die first." He questioned pleasantly, smiling as he drove something green and sharp towards her chest. Isako stiffened ready for the impact and knowing it would hit her heart. She closed her eyes to a pain that never came. She opened her eyes to find the green thing split in half and him glaring at something behind her accusingly. Ama was standing there, glowing hands buried in the soil as he glared at the man angrily. _Plants,_ she realized, _he uses plants to fight just like Ama._ Asai appeared next to them, with a snarl of "Go!" Before she launched herself towards the Jonin disappearing as they both became blurs.

"We can't leave her alone to fight him," Tamasine said fiercely. Isako nodded in agreement as Ama appeared beside her.

"You're right, he's faster." She turned to Ama, his jaw was set, face hard and eyes blazing. "Can you manipulate his weapons so they don't work?" He nodded and drew a seed from his sash dropping it to the ground and burying it. "Tamasine, use clones to distract him," the boy disappeared, with a feral grin reminiscent of Asai. Isako turned to find the Jonins evading each other so expertly they looked like they were dancing. Asai, as she'd expected was a second slower, but that second could cost her, her life. Isako took a deep breath closing her eyes and feeling her chakra flicker inside her as she moved into the familiar hand signs. It was time to demonstrate some new techniques that Isano had taught her. Focusing her chakra until she had a thin film across her skin she opened them in time to see, Haruki snarl finding his own plants wrapping around him as he attempted to stab a Tamasine clone. Asai slammed her fist into him, sending his body in Isako's direction, the girl smirked flickering behind the man, glowing hands wrapping around his throat as she sent the gathered chakra into him in the split second it took to make contact, targeting his vital organs. Isako's eyes widened as she realized what had been wrong. _A clone?!_

She heard the dark chuckle behind her as a stab of pain went through her back as everything went black.

… … … … … …

**Ama's POV**

Ama watched horrified as Isako went limp in Haruki's arms after she dispelled the clone. Asai cursed stopping in place, grabbing a snarling Tamasine, who she quickly threw behind her. Ama looked at her furious face and realized with dawning horror she'd known he was a clone, she'd been waiting for the real him to appear and now he had, the only problem was they'd disobeyed and now he had Isako. The man swung the girl over his shoulder peering at Asai, with a malevolent smile.

"Looks like it's true what they say about your teammates meaning more to you than the mission." Asai narrowed her eyes at him in response. "A foolish notion for a shinobi to hold." He glanced at them lazily.

"It's been fun, but my brother will be done with your little village by now, so I really must depart," he said languidly, eyes mocking as he tightened his grip on Isako.

"Wait!" Asai cried. "Leave the girl, your missions over right? You got the village." Ama felt his heart hammer in his throat, no not Isako. Haruki paused thoughtfully looking as if he actually considered it. Ama felt a flash of anger knowing he was just mocking them, but bit his lip to hold in any words that might put Isako in more danger than she already was.

"No, I think I'll keep my little prize," he smiled a sadistic gleam in his eyes. "She really is just so pretty and not to mention it isn't everyday you stumble on an Arashi unguarded." Asai lurched foreword in an attempt to stop him before the grass rose up in a windmill knocking her away, the blades cutting any unprotected skin. Ama didn't react to the pain on his cheek, but simply looked up at Tamasine shocked. Isako was gone. Taken by some sadistic Missing-nin.


	6. Brothers

When Isako opened her eyes she saw nothing. The blackness filled the entire room and dumbed her most used sense, sight. Her heart thudded heavily in her chest as for a few seconds the panic gripped her. It was instinct to fear the dark, something ingrained deep in the human psyche. Isako felt her body heave with the gasping breaths that came pained and slow as they echoed in the cold room.

Where was she? How had she gotten here? Where were the others? All these thought warred against her buzzing mind grabbing her attention. Isako moved and instantly regretted it. She hissed as a glassy pain dug through her head and something sharp into her wrists, the resulting sting, followed by dampness marked the air with a warm metallic scent that disturbed her sensitive nose. _Blood_, her fuzzy mind and woozy stomach informed her as she slumped to the ground, body steadily beginning to ache. _Spikes_, she realized as another movement drove the sharp object into her wound. Her stomach gave a roll of protest, heaving in an attempt to empty itself though, it contained nothing. _Poisoned spikes._

… … … … … …

**Ama's POV**

It was worse than anything he could have imagined. The village was being burned and amongst the fires he could see the corpses of the dead. The smell was even worse than the sight of the once beautiful village torn and desecrated. It was like nothing he'd ever smelled before, mixed in with the warm, coopery scent of blood and the sooty, stinging scent of smoke was something that rolled his stomach and stilled his heart. The smell of burning flesh. It was putrid and all consuming similar to the smell of a rotting corpse of some poor unfortunate creature the vultures had left in he midday sun, only fresher, sharper. He leaned against the tree of the limb he stood on connected to. War. This was what war smelled like. Ama decided trying to catch his panting breath and stop his trembling form. He heard Tamasine's voice, soft and cursing beside him. It was all he heard beside the very faint crackle of the glowing orange flames. They were still too far to hear the chaos of the village. The forest was perfectly quiet, animals all hidden from the disaster. It gave the illusion of calm.

"W-We have to go," Ama finally said into the silence. He opened his eyes to find Asai looking down at them pityingly. Her eyes were odd. Sad, but not surprised or as disturbed as Tamasine and his own were. Ama realized suddenly why his mother had been so vehemently against his becoming a shinobi. Not just because, as she'd claimed, she'd be constantly worried about him dying, but also because she was afraid he'd develop those eyes. Those eyes no longer surprised, by the cruelty of humanity, eyes repulsed by it, but they'd accepted it as a part of life. Something unavoidable. Eyes too old for someone so young. They were of someone who'd lost their innocence too soon. The eyes of a child soldier. Isako had some of that in her already he realized. But instead of bearing witness her eyes were more of that of someone who'd experienced some of the horrors humans inflicted on one another. Isako had been one of the victims.

"Hai," Asai agreed looking away as if pained. Ama knew her well enough to realize why. She hated this. That her students were about to have some of their innocence ripped away. Ama pitied her slightly, but the horrors before him had numbed him somewhat and something else distracted him, kept him focused on continuing on. Isako. He had to rescue her. No matter what.

"Tamasine," he whispered looking down at the boy, who was watching the village horrified, but with a look reminiscent of Isako's eyes. Both his teammates knew pain caused by others.

"Tamasine." He repeated throat dry and cracking. The boy looked up his brown eyes wide and vague. Ama noticed the tear tracks down his cheeks. There weren't any now, but his eyes were still red. "Tamasine, we have to go. We have to check on them and rescue Isako." Ama's voice cracked slightly on the name, guilt rushing through him and putting a lump in his throat. If she was hurt he'd never forgive himself. If she died he'd hate himself for the rest of his life.

"Isako?" Tamasine questioned eyes focusing slightly. Ama nodded bending down to help the larger boy to his feet.

"Yes, we have to save her." Tamasine blinked a few times clearing the remaining vagueness from his gaze. For a moment he closed his eyes and took a shaky breath. A muscle in his jaw tightened and his eyes opened determined and bright. Ama knew this look. Tamasine had decided to do something and once he did it was nearly impossible to change his mind.

"We'll save her." He said as if it was simple fact.

"Yes," Ama answered his voice inflexible. They would save her. There wasn't another option. Tamasine got to his feet shakily and the shinobi were on their way.

… … … … … …

**Isako's POV**

When Isako woke the second time she felt someone removing her shackles. The unknown poison still in her veins prevented the girl from pushing the person away. They caught her when she fell foreword and leaned her against the wall. There was a sting in her thigh, and things became sharper. More there. She wasn't drifting absently anymore. She winced at the pain at least that had been one good thing about the drugs. She'd been so out of it she hadn't felt anything. It was almost worth it. Almost.

"Where am I?" she managed through her aching dry throat. The girl, it was a girl she'd realized, gave a squeal of surprise as Isako's hand shot out and caught her wrist. She whimpered slightly and Isako shook her, clenching her teeth together irritable. She'd been kidnapped, locked and chained in a dark room, had who knows what done to her in a drugged state, and she was in pain. She did not have the patience to deal with this girl.

"Where am I?" she snarled again pulling the girl closer as her voice dropped into a venomous whisper.

"A-At the b-base, Haruki-sama and Aizen-sama s-sent me to get you," the girl stuttered out shaking like a leaf. Isako growled, but loosened her grip to something less constricting.

"Fine," she told her, voice harsher than she'd attended. Isako felt a flash of guilt as the girl whimpered fearfully. "Fine," she said considerably softer. "Just help me stand I think I can manage from there." The girl seemed to nod before realizing she couldn't see.

"H-Hai," she managed wrapping an arm around Isako's waist to help her up. She quickly flinched away from Isako, when Isako was on her feet, eager to get away. Isako hissed as her legs almost gave out from under her, grabbing the girl's shoulder in an attempt to keep her balance. The girl squeaked, but went still, before her shivering started again. Isako took in a sharp breath closing her eyes to the on set of dizziness, keeping her grip on the girl's shoulder as she did.

"K-Kunoichi-san?" the girl finally whispered, concern creeping into her tone. She flinched as soon as the words left her mouth though. Isako sighed, feeling ashamed for terrifying the poor thing when she was more timid than a mouse already.

"I fine," Isako told her in a slow gentle voice, copying Ama's tone to try and reassure the girl she wasn't a threat. She loosened her grip, gentle patting her shoulder instead. "I'm sorry about your shoulder. I think I might have bruised it." Isako continued quietly. The shivering stopped.

"It's alright Kunoichi-san, I've had worse," the girl told her, obviously trying to sound brave. They made their way across the room, every step an effort, because the fading effects of the poison. Isako paused slightly eyes examining her surroundings the bland concrete furnishing of her cell gave way to a still plain, but expensive paneled flooring, torches lighted their way throwing obscene shadows and creating hiding places. Isako's own shadow flickered in odd shapes as unfamiliar and threatening as the ominous effect the décor gave off. The Suna Kunoichi pulled the now ragged kimono tighter around her at the unnatural silence in this place her eyes flashing towards her escort. The other girl was slightly older than Isako, fifteen she'd guess, she had bruises above her eyes and along her jaw bone, her bright green eyes were eerily reminiscent of Haruki and the dark brown hair only a few shades lighter.

"Why are you here?" Isako finally whispered, slightly sickened by the ghastly images the flickering lights made on the girl's bruised face. She started slightly, blinking at the younger girl in surprise.

"Because my brothers are." she said calmly.

"Who are your brothers?" Isako asked, having a feeling she already knew.

"Why, Aizen-sama and Haruki-sama." the girl whispered as the fell into a silence. Isako calmed her beating heart, and drew up her mask. She needed to be prepared for whatever was coming. Isako gently probed her chakra getting a sense of how bad her situation. Her chakra was severely depleted, but there was enough left to put up a fight if she used it sparsely and focused on Taijutsu. The odds weren't good and they were even worse with the unknown elements, not to mention the known problem of getting through Haruki. The in itself would be a near impossible feat at her level. Doing it now would be unthinkable. Her only hope, no matter how detestable the thought was, was to wait for rescue to come.

… … … … … …

The room where Haruki and the person she assumed was Aizen waited for them was wide and cloaked mostly in shadows, excluding the parts illuminated with a gentle torch light. A plush red carpet led towards the raised dais were two throne like chairs, occupied by two startling similar men, coupled with the suffocating chakra that seemed to press in at her from all sides only added to the menacing aura. Yet as she examined them she couldn't help, but hold back laughter imagining Tamasine's reaction to the situation. _How cliché_, he would have accused _a dimly lit room and thrones? Could you be more obvious megalomaniacs? If you're going to have a blatant god complex at least be original about it._ A giggle escaped her lips, causing the two pairs of identical green eyes to focus on her, one fiery and reminding her of a wolf's, the other cold and calculating with something feline in them. Isako realized she was a little slap happy, probably an after effect of the poison, along with her distant headache and weakness.

"Arashi Isako?" a polite voice questioned silkily coming from the younger man. Isako turned to him noticing the girl, who apparently was their sister quickly leave her head never looking up from the floor. Isako looked up blankly at the familiar young face trying desperately to ignore the blood stains visible on his cream tan shirt. He wore the same hitai-ite as his brother with a line crossed through it signaling his position as missing-nin. Her eyes met his, and the hair on the back of her neck stood up as every instinct screamed in her _danger_. He smiled as Isako realized which brother was the more dangerous one as she looked into that emotionless predatory expression.

"Aizen I presume." She said monotonously more thank full than she'd ever been at her ability to completely hide her emotions. Something told her these were the type of men who'd pounce onto any show weakness eagerly. Aizen raised an eyebrow, his small smile becoming a bit more deadly as his eyes flickered over her slowly. Isako repressed a shiver and the urge to cross her arms in front of her as he took in the mussed kimono top that had been pushed open slightly, the frayed edges stained with the green of grass, and the short length that cut off a few inches above the knees.

"Aren't we intelligent, but then again I wouldn't expect anything less from the Arashi heir." He drawled out eyes slowly returning back to her face. "Now we have a few questions for you, Isako-sama." Isako hated how his tongue curled around her name in what almost sounded like a verbal caress. Isako looked up at him blankly, heart hammering harder with each pound. She could see it in their eyes. This questioning would be anything, but painless. She didn't have time for the gasp to escape her, before Haruki was across the room and behind her, fingers gently circling her neck, brushing away the black strands as he did.

"Such smooth skin you have," he purred into her ear, stroking along a vein in her throat. "You really have taken such good care of it, and such a beautiful golden color, olive I'd say, why don't we see a little more of it." He continue down hand trailing down her throat and across her shoulder, fingers hanging so his fingers brushed her shoulder blades as he gently grabbed onto her kimono sleeve. For one panicked moment Isako thought he'd been planning on undressing her, which brought even more terrifying images into her mind. Instead he simply ripped the tattered green material away to reveal a slender, but well toned arm. She felt him smile as his lips pressed against her neck, when he allowed his hand to trail a line down her arm before it circled around her wrist. He pulled her against him, with the arm that's hand had still been stroking her neck. Aizen flickered across the room kunai being twirled lazily in his fingers his eyes holding a scientific sort of curiosity as he took in her emotionless appearance. He cocked his head to the side like a curious animal and gave her a bone chilling smile.

"Let's see if you're much of a screamer Isako-chan," he stated pleasantly allowing the kunai to press very gently in the sensitive skin in the bend of her arm. "Why don't you tell us a little about those family techniques the Arashis are so famous for?" With that the torture session began.

… … … … … …

"I'm impressed," Aizen told her serenely as he wiped his bloodied blade against his equally bloody pants. "Not only did you with stand the physical torture, but you broke the Genjutsu we'd been spinning, while we distracted you with the cuts. I must say if these are what Arashis are like I'd like at least twenty more playthings just like you." He's eyes examined her callously dismissive her injuries. "It's a shame you're so resilient, though we wouldn't have to scare up such a pretty toy like you if you'd be a bit more reasonable, well at least we haven't ruined anything too important, brother likes to have his fun."

Isako ignored the vile implications of his words as she focused on her wounds instead. They'd coldly, and systematically cut along her arm, widening and deepening each one every time she refused to answer. Eventually Aizen hadn't been able to see through the blood so he'd switched to the left arm. The right arm had started scabbing over thanks to her remaining chakra, but because of the need to break the delicate and complex Genjutsu the missing-nin had weaved she wasn't able to do anything about her other arm so it was left bleeding, weakening her as it did. Isako bit her lip as she pushed herself up, relying heavily on the damaged left arm, so not to break open the fresh scabs on the right. She pressed it against her stomach as she ripped up the bottom of her kimono with her teeth, to make a tourniquet out of. The men didn't stop her and in fact seemed amused by her feeble attempts to prolong her life.

"I told you we should have used the old woman first," Haruki told him with a pout as he examined the girl. "I hate it when you break my toys before I get a chance." Aizen rolled his eyes at his brother's words as an unpleasant smile broke across his face at the sound of fast approaching footsteps.

"Don't worry, we'll make the old woman heal her after we get what we want, then you can play with her all you want." Haruki gave a pleased smile at this that made Isako tremble fearfully, the pain she could handle, she'd felt worse from her father's beatings, but the other things the grass ninja had in his mind were what terrified her. She turned worried about who this old woman was as someone entered.

"Aizen-sama, Haruki-sama," a voice called out as a burly man pushed a familiar old woman towards them. "I got the old bitch, but man did she put up a fight, killed Moto and Kon, before we could get those cat-chra sealing things on her that Miko gave us." The man told them, though they were clearly ignoring him as they watched the woman who in turn stared horrified down at Isako's bloody form.

"Isano-sensei," the girl managed weakly, this pushed the old woman into action as she quickly stumbled across the ground, unbalanced by her own injuries. Isano fell to her knees by Isako, hands instantly cupping the girl's face as the other trailed over her arms.

"Your chakra is sealed old woman," Haruki stated gleefully after a few minutes of Isano's fruitless labor of trying to make her chakra obey her. Isano glared at the man, quickly pulling Isako to her chest protectively. Isako shivered feeling the weakness in herself as her mind began to grow fuzzy from blood loss.

"Why did you do this?" she asked in a low voice, her blue eyes furious. "You could have interrogated me. You didn't have to hurt the child. It was completely pointless when her sensei already knew her secrets."

_Completely pointless._

_Completely pointless._

_Pointless, unnecessary._ The words rang through Isako's mind again and again. What part of her life hadn't been pointless? When hadn't she been hurt unnecessarily, just for someone else's twisted enjoyment? Never, her mind answered for her as her eyelids drooped, her head dropping onto Isano's shoulder. What a useless existence. What was the point of someone who only existed to feel pain? There wasn't a point. She was…unnecessary. Isako's breath caught and she winced into Isano whimpering slightly as it became harder to breath. And suddenly it wasn't. Her lungs breathed in easier, and her heart pumped without a fight. Isako's violet gaze met Isano's, of course. The old woman didn't want them to know it hadn't worked. She would get them out of it. Isako relaxed as she was healed, though she pretended she was still injured as Isano pretended she was helpless.

"Does there have to be a point?" Haruki questioned rhetorically, and then his lips twisted into a sneer. "You of all people should understand pointless bloodshed Isano-sama." Isako felt Isano tense, but ignored it her slowly clearing mind focusing on his words. What in the world was this sociopath talking about? Isano was a healer, nothing like him.

"Oh, don't want your precious student to hear the story do you?" Haruki questioned spitefully, looking downright gleeful. "Why don't you tell it to little Isako-chan, brother? You always were the better story teller." Aizen smiled at Haruki indulgently with a small smile.

"The Jashinist, Hidan, was displeased when Yugakure decided to lose its shinobi ways. He believed that shinobi were meant to kill," Aizen began, before Haruki interrupted him.

"Smart man," Haruki muttered under his breath with a rather maniac expression. Aizen gave him a scolding look and the older man fell silent.

"He told his plans to the two other dispiples of Jashin, one his lover and the other his best friend, the man was eager to help, but his sister, Hidan's lover, was reluctant to take the lives of her neighbors even if it was for her god. She tried to convince them against it, eventually Hidan and her brother swore not to and the girl relaxed thinking she convinced them against it. Her love blinded her to the signs they showed. She knew very well they would go ahead with their plan, but she also knew if she told, she'd known the elders would kill Hidan, so she kept her silence.

"Finally the day came when Hidan went through with his plans. The first person he killed was his friend. Then he proceeded to slaughter the other villagers. His lover watched placidly, not bothering to stop him. When it was done, she approached him among the dead and dying and asked him to take her with him. He told her he wouldn't take a little coward with him so she grew angry. She cursed and hit him, but the man only laughed throwing the scorned girl to the bloody ground and left her to face her trial. The girl angry and bitter began to heal the almost dead and claimed tearfully when the survivors found her that she'd tried to stop him, but he'd been too powerful. But they hadn't been tears of loss, but of anger at the man who'd scorned her. So she stayed in the village consumed by her bitterness for being left behind." Aizen told them finishing the story with relish.

Isako looked at Isano's tight pained expression and realized some of that vile story was true. She had been the mad man's, Hidan she now knew, lover, but she hadn't, wouldn't have begged that man to take her with him. And hadn't she said earlier that she wasn't a Jashinist?

Haruki laughed at the old woman's expression and broke into a maniac grin as he spoke. "Yes, we met Hidan I can see why you liked him old hag. His blood thirstiness is exquisite. Shame there isn't any women like him or I might consider settling down. He remembers you and in fact told my brother and me, your story. He sends his greetings and said he was considering coming back to finish the job." Haruki laughed loudly at the pain and fear that flickered across Isano's face, but the woman used it as a cover to whisper something in Isako's ear.

"The others are coming. I'll distract these two, run and no questions this time." Isano whispered hastily in a tight voice. Isako barely had anytime to nod her consent, before the woman burst foreword with a startling speed and managed a hit on Haruki. The man's eyes widened as she hit his pressure point hand coated in a deadly chakra. He died the instant she touched him. Isako gaped at the elegant and deadly movements the woman made as she turned on Aizen, who actually smiled when she killed his brother.

"Finally, I've been waiting for you to play your cards since you entered, and I even got the bonus of you taking out my bothersome brother." He drawled sickeningly before he met Isano with a clash of metal and jutsu. Isako jumped to her feet and headed through the open door despite her conscious arguing with her. She had to listen and trust Isano. Just look at what happened last time she disobeyed. With this thought she pumped ahead, using some of the chakra Isano had transferred to hastily stitch together the wounds on her arms that she'd left open to not attract attention to seals inaptness.

… … … … … …

She found them fighting predictably enough. It was a slaughter. Tamasine was severing tendons, breaking limbs, and snapping spines left and right with his bare hands a demonic look on his face making it almost unrecognizable to the boy she had known. Ama's plants were cutting them to shreds with flower petals, catching them in thorny vine traps and bleeding them, and using spores to put them into a Genjutsu sleep. Asai was graceful and merciless, too quick to even see except for the occasional flash of her kunai as she ripped into them. Isako waited frozen as she watched the bloodbath. Finally they stopped the last of their opponents falling to the ground. Ama looked up as his plants retracted and his eyes widened at the sight of Isako standing there watching.

"Isako!" Tamasine shouted as Ama shot across the body littered ground, with those they injured and Asai killed. Isako felt arms encircle her as she simply stared at the people lying haphazardly. It took Asai's hand gripping her shoulder to snap her out of her daze. Her eyes understood Isako's shock at her friend's ability to be so ruthless. Isako swallowed hard, turning away from the bloody scene behind her.

"Isano's fighting them," she told her mouth dry. Asai nodded and they quickly followed through the halls Asai eliminating any enemies in their way. Isako froze as a familiar voice screamed as they headed towards Isano and Aizen's chakra signatures.

"Isako," Asai questioned noticing the reaction that flickered across the girl's face.

"It's Haruki's sister." She told her sensei. "The girl seems to be regularly beaten and loyal to her brothers, but not a threat." They all tensed at the brothers comment.

"Brothers?" Ama echoed eyes anxious.

"As in plural?" Tamasine questioned in a tight voice. Isako nodded looking down at the paneled floor flying by under her feet. Asai looked at her sharply, teal eyes questioning.

"Used to be, Isano-sensei killed Haruki, Aizen is his younger brother." Isako said stiffly. They all looked down at her startled at her emotionless façade and cold voice. Their eyes drifted to her arms and a stony silence settled over them.

Isako felt the unease in her stomach a split second before the world blew up in front of them. Her stunned mind barely had time to register the bright lights and fire that sent her body flying backwards, before she was cocooned in a mushy softness. Isako gasped instantly beginning to fight her restraints, before she realized what it was. It was plant vines. Twisting all around her and creating a shield from her and the fiery abyss in front of them. She shivered as she felt the plants vibrate with aftershocks of a second explosion. Finally though they released her and she saw the others, with similar protection, starring at the charred landscape in front of them. Or more exactly the three people in the middle of the area.

Isano was panting, a cut above her eye bleeding profusely even as green sparks of healing chakra worked to stop it. She had other superficial wounds across her body and her clothes were burnt, but she was alive and better than Isako would expect from an explosion of that magnitude. Aizen wasn't so lucky. One of his arms was hanging limply, bloodied and useless, he had deep cuts and black bruises covering his visible skin, it also looked as if Isano had broken several of his fingers. He was covered in soot with burns on his hands, but he still had that calm look in his eyes, though now he looked slightly maniac. Then he did something that scared Isako more than anything. He laughed.

He kept laughing as he grabbed the third person, his sobbing younger sister, by her hair and tossed her foreword. The girl had more bruise and cuts, and was covered in burns, her cloths charred black, but she was still alive barely. Isako shivered in horror realizing why Aizen wasn't dead from the explosion. He'd used his sister as a shield.

"Almost had me old hag," he told her smiling lopsidedly. "If it wasn't for precious little Ai I'd be dead. But seeing as that wasn't the case I suppose it's time for me to finish this." He said sounding practically cheerful as he flickered foreword. The Genins' eyes went wide as they watched how the shinobi moved with such deadly accuracy and precession. It was an amazing battle to watch. Isano matching him move for move using precise quick attacks, while Aizen fought with ferocity, using powerful chakra consuming attacks that only grazed the woman. They were even.

"I'm going to help Isano-sama, get the girl away and do not interfere!" Asai told them before entering the fray. They all looked at each other and nodded, quickly going to help Ai, while Asai and Isano kept Aizen busy.

The girl was even worse close up. The visible wounds covered every part of her, and the burns were horrifying, completely out of Isako's skill level to heal completely, the wounds to her vital organs were just as bad. Isako looked down into those vague, pain filled eyes and tried. She could at least speed up the process of the burns healing and fight off any infection. Chakra wasn't ideal to sterilize wounds and it was best used with medicine, but Isako had to try. And Isano had taught her a minimal at healing some of the organs that were injured. They could at least keep her alive until Isano could look her over.

"Here eat this," Ama told the girl holding out an orange plant, Isako recognized as a natural pain killer. The girl opened her mouth seeming to understand and chewed it with difficulty as Isako healed her broken jaw. Damn, Isako cursed mentally, she didn't have enough chakra to completely even the minimal healing she was capable of.

"Tamasine how depleted are your chakra levels?" Isako questioned the boy who'd been watching the battle behind them so they would have warning if they needed to flee with the girl.

"I'm almost fully charged, I didn't need any for the Taijutsu earlier." He explained.

"Switch places with Ama, he'll watch and you help me with her healing." Tamasine nodded quickly taking the blonde boy's place beside her. "Put your hand on my shoulder and pump your chakra into me, or better yet just create a film of it over your hand, I'll take it from there. It'll hurt, but try not to fight." As soon as he nodded Isako probed for his chakra, she found it and latched on, causing him to wince, but otherwise not react. Isako grimaced knowing how unpleasant the feeling was, but quickly focused on Ai. She didn't have enough skills to knit the bones and things together with a creature as complex as a human quite yet, but focusing chakra on the wounds would sped up her body's natural healing process, though it would leave but Isako and Ai exhausted afterwards.

The group remained silent, the only noise in the clearing from the fierce battle taking place behind them and the gasping breath coming from Ai. Isako blinked against the sleepy haze that tried to over take her as Ai's tissue slowly grew together and her burns stopped bleeding, fresh skin beginning to form. One hand drifted up to heal her broken nose to make her breathing less haggard.

"That's all I can do," Isako said falling against Tamasine a few moments later. The boys nodded, Ama picking up Ai and Tamasine helping Isako stand. The girl turned to look at the fight. Isano and Asai were both sporting fresh injuries, but Aizen was much worse, he's calm finally gone and desperation on his face. Isako smiled. They'll beat him, she thought, they'll beat him and it'll be over. But then something unexpected happened. Something that turned the tide of the battle.

"Well, well brother, looks like you need some help," a male voice said, one that sounded just like Haruki. Isako turned paling. It had come from Ai, who was now smiling at them cheerful her eyes too bright with cruelty. Haruki was alive.


	7. Determination

Isako could only remember one time before in her life when she'd felt the terror and absolute helplessness that coursed through her now. She'd been six at the time and playing with Nori in one of the rare moments of peace that had always eluded her home life. Her older sister's Sachi, fourteen at the time, and Ayame, sixteen, had been arguing quietly in the background as they watched the girls. The noise had attracted her father's attention and the man had been very angry. It had been even worse when Isako attempted to sneak out of the room, while he was distracted by the older girls. It had been her worst beating ever and not one she could ever forget. She could still feel her brittle bones cracking and hear her own screams that sounded more like a caged animals than a humans. The next day she discovered why all this had occurred. Her father had discovered Ayame's relationship with her one day husband Haru. For years Isako had resented her sister for this.

And now she felt the same desperateness as she stared horrified at what appeared to be Ai, holding a kunai to a stunned Ama's neck. The thing smirked at them as its skin started to stretch and bubble, a few grotesque moments later Haruki stood there his injuries freshly healed, eyes bright and eager. Isako's knees went weak as she realized what had happened. Another trick. Isano hadn't managed to kill him so he'd transformed into his own sister sometime during the battle, while they were distracted. He must have known they would heal him and now he had the advantage of surprise and yet another hostage. Feeling a flash of icy determination Isako took in a breath to scream a warning, only to be stopped as the metal dug into Ama's soft skin causing a slow trickle of red blood to flow. Tamasine growled, but remained silent also. Haruki's smile widened and grew mocking as he bent down and licked the blood away. Isako felt the disgust and fury bubble in her chest.

"Such weakness," Haruki sneered fingers stroking Ama's silky hair ignoring the way the boy flinched, body stiffening, into the kunai to escape the vile touch. "I'd expect it from those weaklings from Konoha, but I thought better of Suna shinobi." He made a clicking noise with his tongue, adopting the reprimanding voice of a teacher as he scornfully chastised them. "Tsk, tsk, it seems it falls to me to teach the little shinobi the rules, since their sensei so royally screwed them up." He allowed his finger to trail over Ama's cheekbone lazily gaining a snarl from Tamasine. Isako clenched her teeth together forcing her turbulent emotions to calm. As much as she wanted to kill this man both for what he was doing to Ama and had done to her, she had to think.

"Perhaps I'll start with this pretty little thing here," he purred bending down and whispering something in Ama's ear. The boy's eyes widened and meet Isako's violet ones with a desperate sort of determination. Nodding her understanding and noting how Ama's hand was pinned to his sash, his hands were just loose enough for him to manage to grasp a seed. Isako's hand drifted down her thigh to clutch the kunai she'd hidden in the kimono, flipping it once she fell into a crutch. Haruki watched her like a hawk smiling with a gleam of admiration in his dark emerald eyes.

"Well, well it seems Little Arashi-chan is a quick learner," the man drawled looking at her emotionless mask and examining her posture for weaknesses. Isako silently prayed Tamasine would realize she wasn't giving up on Ama. Thankfully after a few tense moments he copied her movements. Haruki looked ready to squeal in glee.

"Wonderful you both are learning a very important lesson, the mission comes first." said the cheerful sadistic man. Isako let her kunai fly at the same time as Tamasine. Haruki gracefully flipped away from the first one and patted away Tamasine's lazily with the kunai he'd held against Ama's throat. Chuckling he spoke in a deep voice close to Ama's cheek, causing another shockwave of protectiveness and bloodlust to swirl in Isako's chest. Ama gave them a bitter smile signaling he was ready as Haruki talked.

"They must really dislike you little Flower Kunoichi," the man told him chuckling and leering at Tamasine and Isako. "Perhaps the girl's jealous? Or is it the boy, did you reject him?" Haruki would have continued on in this disgusting vein if not for Ama's hand suddenly touching his arm, the boy's slim fingers wrapping around the muscular bulk as he gave a pitiless smirk.

"Neither, now rot in hell you bastard," Ama growled activating his jutsu. Haruki didn't have time to react eyes widening slightly as Ama made his hand seals with _one_ hand. Isako felt the beast that had appeared in her heart calling for Haruki's blood growl in pleasure, this man was about to realize the fatal mistake of under estimating their Ama. As the vines shot away from his palm, burying themselves in the man's skin and twining around his throat Ama couldn't resist one last comment. "Oh and I'm a boy." Haruki never heard it, his hand falling away as his body sunk to the ground with a dull thud.

Isako quickly caught Ama as he fell foreword and tried to move him away, but he wouldn't allow her too, waiting until the last minute when all light had faded from his eyes and Haruki was surely dead. Ama looked at her his face twisted in consternation and Isako willingly placed her hand on the man and used the remaining bit of her borrowed chakra to make sure he was indeed dead. There was no answering spark, pulse, or breathing. Haruki had died and Ama had killed him. The weight of that realization seemed to hit the boy all at once and he went limp in Isako's arms, before twining his spindly arms around her waist shaking violently as he sought comfort. Isako stiffened instinctively, but with a slight shiver she remembered her own disgust at the touch and held the boy as her mind tried to wrap itself around the fact that Ama had taken his first life.

"How?" questioned Ama, his shaking stopping slightly, as Tamasine wrapped his bulkier form around them. "How could I have done it?" Isako bit her lip unsure of how to answer and looked up at Tamasine. The older boy petted Ama's hair gently.

"To protect us. To protect yourself. That man was a murderer, Ama, don't feel guilty. It's alright to mourn the fact you took a life, but don't regret taking his." Tamasine assured him in quiet voice, eyes soft, and voice as gentle as a caress. Isako found herself leaning towards Tamasine along with Ama.

"I killed him that makes me a murderer." Ama pointed out his voice trembling slightly. Isako tightened her grip resting her head on Ama's back as her eyes quickly checked to make sure the battle they heard was still a safe distance away. When her eyes flickered back to her boys Tamasine was speaking again, in his soft voice.

"You killed, yes, but you aren't a murderer. A murderer preys on those weaker than him for his own enjoyment, enjoys the sound of his victims screams and the taste of their blood. You don't Ama. You would have never killed Haruki if he hadn't been threatening us. If he'd lived you'd be dead and so would we. Then he would have joined his brother and possibly killed Asai. You made the right choice wit the options you were given." soothed Tamasine.

Ama looked up at him eyes pained, "B-but—"

"But nothing, there was no choice. We are shinobi now, that does not always mean simple jobs were nobody dies. It means death, it means killing. Never regret protecting a comrade, _never_." Tamasine said firmly, his tone leaving no room for argument. They set there a few moments longer their tongues tasting a vile cooper with blood though there was none, until at last Ama's shivering ceased entirely and he rose shakily to his feet.

Isako looked at her friend pityingly, but didn't help him to his feet. She knew it was something he needed to do by himself. Once he was up they quickly turned their attention back to their senseis' fight. It was over and Aizen was dead. Limping slightly the three Genin made their way foreword, hearts heavy and eyes wide. They finally were beginning to understand what being a ninja entitled.

… … … … … …

"You lied to me Isako-chan." Isako jerked surprised by Isano's words.

"What?" she gasped out eyes wide. When she'd come to see Isano she was prepared for anything the old woman might throw at her, but not this.

"B-But I never-" she managed, chest twisting painfully, until Isano interrupted her with a small smile.

"Calm down child, I'm not angry just surprised." Isano reassured her. Isako blinked and nodded slightly settling down, still not understanding what she had apparently lied about, but horrified the only adult, besides Asai, who'd supported her dream to be a medic thought she'd lied to her.

"Allow me to explain, what I've been teaching you are the most rudimentary techniques. At best with the level I've been teaching you could cool down a slight fever, heal a small cut, and mend a sore throat." Isano explained calmly. "True you've shown great skill in making medicine and mixing poison, I'm sure Ama-kun helped with that, but right now you still shouldn't be advanced as what I saw three days ago. Imagine my surprise when the girl I thought was as green as could be was suddenly healing life threatening wounds which most skilled medics would have trouble with. I'd always assumed the way you mastered them so quickly was you were bright and I was a good teacher," this statement was emphasized with a sheepish smile and sparkle in her eye. "But then I see you doing a lesser version of Shōsen, Shōsen of all things! An A-rank jutsu from a beginner!" Isako felt the cold spread through, finally her misdeed clicking under the woman's intense stare.

"No Genin short of an absolute genius should be able to perform such a thing. I want you to tell me why you no so much? Who taught you? How do you have such precise control?" Isano questioned her sharp, serious tone contrasting heavily with the mild amusement and warmth in her eyes.

Isako stroked her familiar tea cup before taking a drink. Of all her secrets this wasn't exactly the worst, true she doubted her father would approve, but this wasn't life destroying. Relaxing slightly at this comforting thought, that though she felt a little guilty it could have been worse, _much_ worse, she placed her cup down. Taking a steadying breath she spoke.

"I've been perfecting my chakra control since I was eight." Isako admitted after a few moments of silence. "I got my first book about medic-nin at seven. My sister Sachi gave it to me, mostly to keep me quiet. It had been our mother's and it had been worn, you could tell she'd read it often. That was when I decided I wanted to be a medic-nin, I taught myself everything and observed some of the medic-nin in the hospital work." Isako's whisper stopped then as she tried to ignore the tight grip that held her heart and the cold stone that settled around the area of her stomach. It was one of her most secret parts laid bare.

"You want this to become closer to your mother." It was not a question. Isako simply nodded her confirmation. "She died when you were very young."

"In child birth, with me." Isako managed through her constricted throat, she wanted to look away then, but remembered the lessons she'd been taught. _Don't look away, it's a sign of weakness, sit straight and meet their eyes._ Isako steadied herself and did just that look into those piercing blue eyes that had become so familiar.

They sat in silence a few moments longer Isano searching, searching for something as the tension rose higher with every assign second. Isako simply looked back at her, realizing that despite knowing her only a few weeks that she trusted Isano. The old woman would do what was right, even if Isako had deceived her.

"Well there's only one thing I can do," Isako sat straighter feeling the grip on her heart convulse tightening painfully enough to make her wince under usual circumstances. "I have to teach you the correct way to do the Shōsen before you kill somebody. There are also three other jutsu I wish to introduce you to. You will master, one of these, but the other three, including the Shōsen you will after master under the tutor of someone else."

Isako nodded, feeling an odd change in her teacher, in her serious blue eyes. Respect, Isako realized, respect and pride. The girl resisted a happy flush, but relished the happy feelings the endorphins in her brain released. Someone was proud of her. Someone respected her. For her. For her skills. Her skills as a medic. Isako's heart sang.

"We will start now, get some soldier pills from Asai-san, and bring your things here, the jutsu I'm teaching you are high ranking. Two A-ranks, one B-rank, and an all purpose jutsu that every medic must know. We will also be intensifying your study of the anatomy, until you can name every part of the human body. Your poison and medicine knowledge is acceptable, but I will give you some texts to study…" Isano trailed off with a sigh looking at the happy girl with a small smile, but her mood quickly turned somber again. "So much to teach you and so little time, but little Isako-chan I must warn you. This training is not for novices, you've proven yourself to be able to handle it, but it will be hard. Your muscles will be sore, you will work ceaselessly for techniques you won't be able to complete right now, techniques that some medics never master, your fingers will bleed, and your training will submerse you. You will train in your sleep, what little you get, and it could be for nothing. With this knowledge comes pain. Are you prepared Isako-chan?" Isako nodded, she was familiar with such a routine. Her father had always been brutal when it came to training, she could handle this. And she would learn these techniques if it killed her.

… … … … … …

It nearly did kill her. She exhausted herself only sleeping every three days. On such days all she did was sleep and eat to refresh her stores, she was thankful for the way she could restore so quickly and took full advantage of it, but even so there was only so much the human body could take. By the time it was time for them to leave she literally took three steps out of the gate before she fainted finally from the constant use of her body.

She didn't remember the trip back, but Ama told her they took turns carrying her and her stuff. Asai was furious of course, she understood her dedication, but her anger was definitely not softened, nor her tongue. The only reason she didn't crack Isako for her foolish stunt was because she was even more angry at Isano for allowing it. Tamasine and Ama knew where she was coming from completely.

Tamasine had spent the years from the age of six to twelve obsessing over perfecting his Taijutsu style and keeping his mind sharp with puzzle games. The boy was a powerhouse as far as chakra went, all his training making his chakra stores remarkable. Isako knew that in a few years and possibly only in the next two years at the rate he was going Tamasine's chakra could be on par with a Jinchuriki. Isako shivered at the thought. The power he could someday wield would be great, Tamasine would be a legendary shinobi.

Ama, the first shinobi of his family had been just as driven to prove himself. So after learning the basics of Genjutsu and Ninjutsu he'd combined them with what he knew best, flowers. It had been difficult at first, but he'd succeeded after much failure and effort. He'd almost given up, when he'd learned of some shinobi in the Land of Greens who used, Hana Ninpō or Flower Ninja Arts. He'd listened eagerly to the Jonin who'd fought one of the members of the clan and was thankfully for his descriptions, which helped point him in the right direction. In Genjutsu skills, Ama was already up to par with a low-level Jonin and he had a Ninjutsu style completely unique to himself, that he was still expanding on.

Both knew why she did and both supported her. But they both agreed that just because she took her training seriously did not mean she was permitted to endanger herself, and if she dared to it again the consequences would be severe. But it had been worth it, more than worth it. Her Shōsen or Mystical Palm Technique, was now what Isano considered passable, though she had orders to work on it daily to improve her control. She'd mastered the Chakra Scalpel, a basic, but sometimes difficult, because of precision issues, jutsu that all, if not most medics, learned. She also knew the Chikatsu Saisei no Jutsu, how to perform it, the complex symbol necessary, and the hand signs. Though they hadn't been able to actually perform it with just the two of them, Isano had announced Isako would be able to perform it competently enough to keep most patients from dying and that once she mastered the others this one would came easily. The Delicate Illness Extraction Technique, or Saikan Chūshutsu no Jutsu, was one of the most difficult and complex techniques known to medics. Isako had spent days just learning the first step, how to identify the specific location of the pathogen or poison. She'd slept twenty-two hours straight right after her first attempt to remove the dye, which Isano had inserted into a pumpkin secifically for this training exercise, through the technique. By now she could at least stay conscious for up too twenty minutes afterwards, which was enough to get a sixteenth of a pint of the dye.

All in all Isako was pleased by what she'd learned. But it wasn't just her knowledge that pleased her so much. She had friends, close dear friends. That had changed her, but so had what she'd witnessed in Yugakure. The taste of war left something similar to the sour taste of stall vomit on all their tongues. Isako knew she would do everything she could to ensure Sunagakure's peace lasted for years to come. She did not want her village or her people suffering the effects of war. She could tell Tamasine and Ama shared these views. Without meaning to, they sealed their fate that way. The three each silently vowed to prevent war, but they never expected what was brewing just over the horizon.

* * *

**AN:**

**Healing Resuscitation Regeneration Technique (Chikatsu Saisei no Jutsu)**

**I'm not sure rather to use the Japanese names or not, so I'll probably use both unless it becomes too confusing.**

**Sorry for not updating in forever, my muse died, came back to life, died again halfway through, made me delete everything and finally is off suicide watch and back again. If it seems sorta fillerish, but it is necessary for the plot to come. Next chapter Gaara!**


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